


Mirroring the Endless Night

by PennilessOptimist



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: (or at least an attempt at a good slow burn lol), Bisexual Character, Domestic Fluff, Dysfunctional Family, Elliott is a suave bastard, Eventual Smut, F/M, Farmer is sweet and easily flustered, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Love, Mild Language, Possible eventual smut?, Rating May Change, Romance, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:21:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 54,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23333797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PennilessOptimist/pseuds/PennilessOptimist
Summary: With a silent huff slipping past his lips, Elliott pulled his notepad closer to him and clicked the end of his pen, scratching it’s tip on the edge of the paper to get the ink flowing. Aside from those few scribbles though, the paper was completely empty. He’d brought it along in the hopes that the liveliness of the saloon could offer inspiration, yet all his brainstorming had been nothing more than a few dull ideas bouncing around in his mind.He let himself get lost in his thoughts, never noticing the door of the saloon opening to let a new patron inside, nor noticing the sudden clamor and cheering as a new face entered the building and the bustle of conversation increasing.“Hi there! I don’t think we’ve met yet.”
Relationships: Elliot & Female Player (Stardew Valley), Elliott (Stardew Valley)/Original Character(s), Elliott/Female Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 62
Kudos: 138





	1. Early Spring

“Dear Mr. Whittaker, we regret to inform you that your prior literary submission has been denied by our board of reviewers. Positive notes were taken down over your work, which you can find on the additional paper included in the envelope, but the primary takeaway was that while your writing was enthralling, it is sadly not what our editors and investors are searching for at the moment. If you’d like, we have an online list of sister companies which you may find happy to publish you…”

A tired sigh escaped Elliott’s lips as his eyes skimmed over the paper, rereading it once more in his mind. 

Another rejection. He wasn’t sure why it even surprised him at this point.

He’d spent the last year or so in the valley, taking all of his savings with him and leaving behind his rather comfortable lifestyle that’d been supported by his family. Within that span of time he’d managed to pen a short novel, something sweet and simple to get him on his feet in the literary world.

It had been his hope that a witty and fast-paced adventure story would catch the eye of publishers, but the results of all his submissions had shown just the opposite. 

As of late he’d begun questioning himself and his creativity repeatedly. Had the markets shifted, or was he merely trailing behind? Did his writing lack the charm which interested avid readers? Perhaps he was far too confident in his abilities.

Before his train of thought could sink into self deprecation, an unfamiliar noise made his ears perk up. He strained to listen in, a crease in his brow as he picked up on what appeared to be;

“Singing?” he murmured, almost unsure as he asked himself the question. 

Folding the letter, he tossed it aside onto his writing desk and promptly stood up, quickly walking over to the rickety window beside the beach cabin’s front door. Pushing aside the tattered blinds, his eyes had to adjust to the sudden bright light which filled the room. “Oh my, it can’t possibly be noon already, can it?” he asked aloud, peering up at the sun which seemed to be high in the sky.

Turning his attention back to the beach, his eyes skimmed over the shore to find the source of the singing from mere moments ago. It couldn’t have been Willy, the voice had been far too feminine. He knew it couldn’t have been Leah popping by for a visit either, it hadn’t sounded like her. Perhaps it was that young lady in town, the blonde… Haley, is what he remembered her name to be. She’d visit the beach every once and a while with a camera.

Finally, his eyes landed on the unexpected guest- and once he saw who was standing near the docks he found himself with even more questions than before; for he absolutely did not recognize the woman who stood basking in the sunlight.

Though there was one thing he was certain of, and it was the fact that her presence enthralled him.

* * *

Despite it still being the early weeks of Spring, the clear sky and hot sun made Maria feel like it was any old Summer day. If it weren’t for the freshly budding wildflowers or the cherry blossom trees in bloom, the warm front would’ve fooled her.

After five days of nonstop work at her newly acquired farm with her first successful harvest of parsnips, clearing land and meticulously tending for and watering crops, she was ready for a bit of a break. She was searching for an excuse to venture around town a bit more, and when she got a letter from a man named Willy inviting her to the beach she jumped on the opportunity. 

She’d ditched the overalls, heavy gloves, and muddy boots that she’d been working in everyday since she arrived for an outfit which breathed far better; a simple white blouse, denim shorts, and flat footed sandals. All her tools had been left in the shed beside her house, the only item on her person was a small wicker basket to forage with in case she stumbled upon anything valuable in the forest on the way to and from the beach. 

The basket, still empty, swung back and forth as she stepped out onto the shoreline with a happy sway in her step. Absentmindedly, the hummed tune of an old favorite song slipped past her lips, and Maria assumed there was no one around to listen in on the way she stumbled over certain lyrics or wavered in pitch occasionally. 

The sight of the shimmering blue sea brought a wide smile to her face. The view reminded her of home- her childhood home before having to move to Zuzu City as a teenager. Before she knew it, her senses were overtaken by what could only be described as marine.

The scent of salt in the air was practically tangible, and as she walked closer towards the shore she could feel the mist of the waves dancing over her skin.

Before she knew it she’d reached the sandbank, and waves pushed far up enough to just barely touch the soles of her sandals. Curiously, she gazed around, but was unable to see anyone on the shoreline nor the docks. She was able to spy a wooden cabin a little ways away, but the aged wood and overgrown foliage led her to believe it was abandoned, similar to how her own home had been before she reclaimed her grandfather’s land. 

Not to say her small house _wasn’t_ practically decrepit, because it was, but she had some major plans in the works to rebuild and redecorate the property to make it her own.

Since this so-called Willy wasn’t anywhere to be seen, she set her basket down on the warm sand and reached up, grabbing her curly hair and tying it back into a lopsided knot which sat on her shoulders. Brushing a few fly-away strands away from her face, she takes a step forward into the oncoming wave, cool ocean water washing over her feet and sending a shiver down her spine.

“Oh that’s wonderful,” she whispered to herself, her body easing into the cooling water with ease. After days of tinkering with rusted pipes and taking showers that lasted barely longer than five minutes with freezing water, this was her own personal heaven. She had half the mind to strip off her blouse and just dive into the water, but would hold back from doing so since she knew she’d have company any minute now.

For just a moment she was lost in her own peaceful world, staring off into the horizon as distant, wispy clouds high up in the sky formed over the sea. 

“Enjoying the water, lass?”

The surprised shriek that spilled out of Maria’s mouth could likely be heard for miles as the woman practically jumped out of her skin. 

There was a chortle as she quickly spun on her heels, looking towards the wooden docks to see a much older man standing there with two fishing rods in hand and a bucket of bait at his feet. A ragged hat shadowed most of his face, but she was able to see his bushy, unkempt beard easily, as well as what appeared to be blue eyes glittering with amusement. 

“Didn’t mean to startle ye!” he apologized through his wheezing laughter, “Just like your grandpap, ye are. Easy to scare.”

As Maria’s pounding heartbeat slowed, she quirked an eyebrow at the mention of her grandfather. “You knew my abuelo?”

“Sure did, lass. Santi and I go way back, I was the one who taught him how to fish when he and Angel moved in about… fifty years ago,” the man nodded.

The mention of her grandparents, Santiago and Angelina, brought a smile to Maria’s face. “So you must be Willy then?” she asked with a grin.

“Yes ma’am, and I must say that you’re quite the sight for sore eyes. Last time I saw ye, ye were barely bigger than an ankle biter, running around and causing chaos on the farmland,” Willy replies, chuckling softly.

“How sweet,” she smiled, “Now um, I don’t mean to sound pushy or impatient, but was there a specific reason you invited me to the beach? Aside from just nostalgic purposes.”

“Ah yes, since ye’d be taking over the farm I thought ye might like to learn how to fish just like your grandpap,” Willy answers, lifting one of the fishing rods and offering it towards her with a barely visible grin peeking through beneath his mustache.

Maria couldn’t help the excited smile that stretched across her face as she quickly nodded her head, grabbing her wicker basket and walking towards the dock for her lesson.

* * *

The idle chatter and music of the saloon faded into the background as Elliott absentmindedly tapped his pen on his notebook, thoughts and ideas swimming in the forefront of his mind.

“Y’know I don’t think drinking while brainstorming is going to help your cause,” a voice beside him mumbled, and the auburn haired man furrowed his brow and tilted his head to look over at his friend.

“Leah, as much as I appreciate the concern for my creative abilities I can assure you that half a glass of wine is not enough to inebriate me,” Elliott replies, causing her to roll her eyes and smile.

He turned his gaze back to his notebook, only for a pale hand to grab it and tug it away from him. “Why’d you even bring your work with you today? I thought Fridays and Sundays were just for taking it easy in the saloon,” Leah questioned, narrowing her eyes at the writer.

Elliott sighed, leaning back in his chair and grabbing his glass before lifting it to his lips and taking a small slip. “... I received yet another letter of rejection today,” he admitted, frowning at the dejected look which immediately settled on the sculptor’s face.

“Oh Elliott, I’m so sorry… I wish I could stay to cheer you up, but the deadline for my current commission is tomorrow and there’s some finishing details I wanted to carve into it,” Leah sighed sadly, pushing her chair away.

“No worries, I would hate for you to be burdened with my own problems, my friend,” he quickly reassured her, setting the wine glass down, “go and work on your project, I will be just fine.”

Leah pursed her lips as she stood, crossing her arms and giving Elliott a curious look. “Well alright. But Sunday we’re coming back, and there will be no notebooks or papers- nothing. You’re going to relax on Sunday, and I’ll be footing the bill.”

Before he had a chance to disagree or argue Leah was quickly walking out of the saloon, shouting a goodbye over her shoulder and leaving the writer disgruntled. 

With a silent huff slipping past his lips, Elliott pulled his notepad closer to him and clicked the end of his pen, scratching it’s tip on the edge of the paper to get the ink flowing. Aside from those few scribbles though, the paper was completely empty. He’d brought it along in the hopes that the liveliness of the saloon could offer inspiration, yet all his brainstorming had been nothing more than a few dull ideas bouncing around in his mind.

He let himself get lost in his thoughts, never noticing the door of the saloon opening to let a new patron inside, nor noticing the sudden clamor and cheering as a new face entered the building and the bustle of conversation increasing. 

“Hi there! I don’t think we’ve met yet.”


	2. First Impressions

Maria stared up at the saloon, puffing out a semi anxious breath as she dusted off her blouse. 

After her fishing lesson with Willy she returned home with a bucket of fresh fish, walking through the forest with the hope that she’d find some fresh greens to forage on the way there.

While in the forest she met Marnie, the town rancher who lived just south of the farmland. They had a brief conversation, Marnie mentioning that she had plenty of livestock available for purchase once the farm had coops or barns. Before leaving she’d mentioned the saloon would likely be full on this Friday night and to drop by and say hello if Maria got the chance.

So here she was hours later, cleaned up with her wicker basket filled with foraged goodies in the hopes of making a good first impression to the townsfolk she'd yet to meet.

Pushing all her anxious thoughts aside, Maria reached a hand and wrapped her fingers around the handle, turning it and pushing the door open. Immediately, a jingling bell announced her presence. A few heads turned to look her way, the bartender behind the register, a blue haired girl cleaning a glass behind the counter, and a man stood beside a big bear statue briefly glanced up at her before returning to what appeared to be his third mug of beer.

“Ah, Maria! So good to see you, how’s the farm?”

She smiled upon seeing Mayor Lewis seated at a round table near the door and waved a hand, greeting both him and Marnie who were sat beside one another with their respective drinks.

“Hello Mayor! The farm’s doing good, I had my first harvest. I’ve got some parsnips here if you’d like to try.” she replied with a smile, lifting her basket to show her small bounty of goods.

“No need, I’m doing just fine. But it’s good to see you taking a break,” Lewis replied, tipping his drink her way before taking a swig of what looked to be ale.

Following the quick conversation, Maria went around the saloon greeting people and offering small gifts as a way to introduce herself. 

The bartender and saloon owner was a man by the name of Gus, a jolly fellow who also cooked all the saloon meals. He was more than happy to receive a free parsnip from the farmer, promising to use it in a delicious dish. Along with him was Emily, who worked at the saloon, and was more than ecstatic to meet Maria and make a new friend (she also happily accepted a daffodil from the basket). There was an attempt to speak to the man beside the bear statue, who Emily said was named Shane, but he just grumbled and ignored her. Robin was there and Maria struck up a quick conversation with the carpenter before she left to dance with her husband, a scientist named Demetrius.

In the next room of the saloon was a pool table with a trio of some of the town’s ‘younger’ people; Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian. Maria had seen Abigail once or twice in Pierre’s shop, but had never figured out that she was actually his daughter (*she doesn’t at all look like Pierre, but she seems sweet,* Maria found herself thinking curiously). Sam was the son of Jodi, an older lady that Maria had run into earlier that week, and his most notable traits were his love of music and his uniquely styled hair. Then there was Sebastian, dressed in all black as he leaned against the wall coolly and polished a pool stick. He was the son of Robin, who’d mentioned him on her first day, and though Sebastian seemed slightly standoffish, it wasn’t in an entirely rude way like how Shane had been.

She’d had brief conversations with Pierre who was sat at the bar, Clint the blacksmith (who she made a mental note to visit next week because her tools needed some serious upgrading), and waved a quick hello to Willy. 

And finally, there was one final person to meet, who Maria was admittedly quite curious about. A handsome man sat in the corner of the saloon, scrawling into a notebook. He had long auburn hair which flowed over his shoulders, and his brows furrowed as he took what looked like notes. 

Screwing up her courage, she waltzed over and took a seat across from him, setting her basket down and greeting him. “Hi there! I don’t think we’ve met yet,” she said with a grin, tilting her head as she looked over at him.

The man looked shocked almost, his green eyes going wide as he looked up to meet her gaze. Quickly he straightened up, likely upon realizing he was staring, and offered her a charming smile as he set his pen down.

“No, I cannot say we have. Are you a new resident of the town, or perhaps just a traveler wandering through?” he asked curiously, his eyes twinkling with curiosity. 

_‘Oh no, his voice is hot,’_ she gasped in her head, ‘ _no, shut up, he’s just any other guy.’_

Quickly she nodded, brushing some hair out of her eyes which had fallen as a result. “Um, yea, I just moved in actually, I’m the owner of the farmland in the north-west part of the valley. My name’s Maria, thought you might’ve liked to know since we’d be… neighbors? Fellow townsfolk?”

He chuckled softly, and Maria found herself blushing. “Well, it is a pleasure to meet you Maria. I’m Elliott, I live on the beach which is likely why we haven’t crossed paths as of yet. Aside from the occasional grocery trip or walk in the forest, I tend to keep to shore. In fact, I was the last person to move into the valley, before you of course.”

“Well I guess it’s nice knowing I’m not the only odd one out. I’d always assumed everyone living in Pelican Town was deep-rooted, y’know? At least that’s how it was when I visited as a kid,” Maria sighed, absentmindedly tracing her fingers over the rim of the basket as she spoke.

Elliott hummed at this, his eyes lighting up. “Ah, did you come to this town often as a child?’ 

“Mhmm. At the time my family and I lived on the complete opposite side of the continent. Opposite ocean, opposite sky, sometimes it felt like we lived on a _whole_ other planet because it was so far. But, we’d come visit my abuelo often- er, my grandpa. He owned Amanecer Farm, which I’ve now inherited. I was very young at the time though, so even if I remember parts of the town I don’t remember all the people,” Maria explained, a nostalgic smile playing on her lips as she delved into her memories, “I didn’t even recognize Mayor Lewis when he greeted me at the bus stop, and he was one of my grandfather’s best friends.

“How intriguing, and I’d guess that it’s likely been an absolute treat now that you’ve returned to a place so significant in your childhood,” Elliott hummed, and Maria quickly nodded her head at this, “I hope you do not mind, but could I inquire as to what ‘Amanecer’ means? It’s not a word I recognize.”

“It’s Spanish for sunrise, or dawn, but it’s sort of grammatically incorrect. Technically it should be ‘El Amanecer’, but the El made it too mouthy in my abuelo’s opinion,” she answers with a giggle.

“I must admit, I’m not well versed in Spanish, though it is a lovely language. I chose to study French during my schooling career instead.”

“Oh? Well Spanish is actually my first language,” Maria admits with a blush, lifting a hand to scratch the back of her neck.

Elliott seemed taken aback at this. “I would have absolutely never guessed that English isn't your first language, you’re quite fluent,” he complimented, making her cheeks go red as she cast her gaze to the floorboards.

“Oh, you flatter me,” she giggled, “I didn’t used to be this well versed. When I was a young teen my English was very broken, and my accent was heavy. But years of living in the city made the accent wear off, and I put a lot of practice into my vocabulary and grammar- had to if I wanted to be taken seriously in the workplace.”

“Knowing Zuzu City, I’ll assume you worked an office job. How was that?”

“Awful,” Maria answered immediately, pulling a slight laugh out of Elliott.

He sighed and nodded his head, the smile still playing on his lips as he lifted the wine glass for a sip, “I can only imagine. Up until last year I’d lived in Zuzu City my entire life, and I am more than familiar with the way the corporate world can drain one’s soul.”

“Don’t I know it,” Maria grumbled, a few foul memories coming to the forefront of her mind as she thought back to her old job. Quickly though, she pushed those away and turned to look back at Elliott, offering a smile as the two continued to speak.

Their conversation trailed on, and the two continued a pleasant conversation, learning about one another and discussing the town. Elliott was more than intrigued to learn about the farm and the work she’d done so far and her future plans, and Maria was curious to learn about his life as a writer and his current projects. 

Maria couldn’t place her finger on it, yet somehow she found Elliott so easy to talk to. With most new people she’d be more reserved, carefully selecting how she spoke, afraid to stammer or stumble over her words from nervousness. 

Somewhere towards the end of the evening, Emily swung by to offer the pair beverages. “You want another glass of that pomegranate wine?” she asked Elliott with a cheery smile, “Oh! I never even asked if you wanted something to drink Maria, I’m so sorry-”

“No no, it’s fine don’t worry,” Maria quickly said, assuring her that she didn’t have to apologize, “I shouldn’t have drinks either way, I’m too much of a lightweight and the last thing I need is to wake up at six in the morning with a hangover.”

“I’m going to have to decline as well, but thank you for the offer,” Elliott agreed, handing Emily the now-empty wineglass which he’d been nursing for the last half hour.

Emily nodded as she grasped the glass, “well alright, you two have a good night and get home safely.”

“You too!” Maria called out as she walked away, before turning to look back at her new friend. “Well, sadly I should really get going, it’s nearly eleven,” she sighed, pulling out her phone to check the time.

“I do suppose you’re right. Would you perhaps like me to walk you home?” he offered, gathering his notebook and pen into one hand. 

Maria shook her head as she stood up, “no need, the town is more than safe, and I wouldn’t want to be a burden. Besides, if you walk all the way to the farm, and all the way back to the beach you won’t be home until _well_ past midnight, maybe even one o’clock.”

“Well alright, but I can assure you that you that you wouldn’t by any means be a burden upon me, my friend,” Elliott replied, giving her a genuine smile.

At this notion Maria found herself blushing, a red dusting her cheeks which she hoped he wouldn’t be able to see.

Quickly she cleared her throat and grabbed her wicker basket, “I’ll be seeing you around then, and good luck with your book.”

“Best of luck with the farm as well, I hope you continue to have bountiful harvests. And, I suppose if it means getting the chance to say hello again, I’ll have to consider venturing into town more often,” he suggested, green eyes meeting her own.

If her cheeks were red before, she could only assume that now she must’ve been tomato red. “O-oh? Well I guess- er, guess I’ll l-look forward to that. Um, b-bye!,” she stammered, practically stumbling over her chair as she stepped away from the table. 

Elliott could only chuckle as she walked out, entirely flustered as she sped out the saloon’s entrance and began walking towards the town center which would lead her back home.

The nighttime air wasn’t enough to cool her face, the mere fact that Elliott was willing to go out of his way just to see her made her feel bubbly and appreciated in a way she hadn’t felt in a very long time.

It wasn’t until the cobblestone paths turned to dirt roads that she realized she had never even offered Elliott a greeting gift from her basket like she’d offered everyone else in the saloon. _‘Guess it’s not so bad,’_ she thought, a small smile gracing her lips, _‘just gives me an excuse to visit.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooo, first two chapters are done, I got the sudden inspo to write and just blasted through em
> 
> Gonna *attempt* to update this at least once a week, but I'm also tempted to do nothing except play Animal Crossing all day
> 
> ALSO, hope y'all are staying home and staying safe, the state of the world is a mess but we have to do all we can to help one another :))
> 
> (also sorry for any typos, my proof reading wasn't much more than a skim cause I was excited to post lol)


	3. Egg-related Festivities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A conversation which goes awry, and the fun festivities of the Egg Festival

It was mid-spring, and the heavens had graced Maria with a cooling sprinkle of rain. Water didn’t pour down from the sky, instead it drizzled down, bringing a smile to the farmers face as she leaned over her newest harvest, digging up fully grown cauliflowers from her field.

“Orion! Look at these, aren’t they just gorgeous?” she exclaimed, lifting one of the biggest cauliflowers and turning on her heel to face who she’d been speaking to. 

The person in question was Orion: her new cat. She’d received him just two days ago when Marnie swung by with him swaddled in a blanket. Maria was more than happy to accept the tom cat, admiring his steely blue eyes that contrasted with his dark brown and black fur.

Currently, Orion was sprawled out on the house’s front porch, sunbathing in a spot which protected him from the light rainfall. Upon hearing his name be called he lifted his head, just barely acknowledging Maria’s presence before rolling over and ignoring her once more.

“Very nice. Thanks for the support, buddy,” Maria sighed, hoisting the cauliflower into her basket to take to Pierre’s shop. Majority of the time she’d leave her earnings in the produce box at the edge of her farm to be retrieved at night, but she was saving up for an upgraded fishing rod that she wanted to purchase by the end of the day, so she’d go and sell them now.

Rolling up her flannel sleeves, she grabbed both baskets full of fresh vegetables and lifted them up, shouting a goodbye to Orion over her shoulder before trudging down the dirt path to head into the town center.

Two months ago, a walk like this while carrying at least fifty pounds would leave her feeling sore all over, but living on the farm and tending to the fields had garnered her some muscle mass. Nothing incredibly different at first glance, but she certainly noticed the toning her arms had gained.

She’d noticed a slight loss of fat at her waist, which had slightly upset her at first since she was quite the fan of her curves, but she figured that trading a little curvature for a little muscle wasn’t the worst that could happen to her.

After about ten minutes of walking she’d made it to the town plaza, offering a smile to Jodi and Caroline as the two mothers passed her, no doubt having their daily gossip session. She also saw Evelyn, the grandmother of another young man in the town, tending to flowers near the saloon. The elderly lady set down her watering pail and waved a frail hand, and all Maria could do was lift her baskets of cauliflower and widely grin, hoping the woman would understand her hands were too full to wave back.

When she heard Evelyn chuckle sweetly, she assumed she got the message, and continued on her trek to Pierre’s. Upon standing in front of the shop’s door, however, she came to a sudden revelation.

With both hands preoccupied with very _heavy_ baskets, the rope handles of which were beginning to dig into her skin, and she knew that having to put them on the ground only to pick them up again would hurt.

“Well isn’t this a pleasant surprise?”

Maria quickly tilted her head back, a smile spreading on her face once she saw a familiar auburn haired man walking down the stone path her way.

She and Elliott had crossed paths a handful of times since their first meeting in the saloon all those weeks ago. They happened upon one another in the forest while Maria had been foraging for spring onions to snack on, and she teasingly mocked the disgust that Elliott weakly attempted to hide at the sight of the dirt covered root vegetables. Their next meeting was at the beach while she’d been setting up crab pots that Willy had loaned her, and the two managed to bond over their shared love of seafood (she made sure to note that his favorite meals were lobster and crab cakes, maybe once she had a kitchen installed she could cook either for his birthday in autumn). She’d also attempted to keep up with her Friday visits to the saloon, both to socialize with other townspeople, and get the occasional drink with Elliott and Leah (Elliott had happily introduced her to Leah, an artist who lived in the riverside cabin south of Marnie’s ranch).

“H-hi there Elliott!” she greeted him, struggling to get the words out as her arms finally began to feel the strain the baskets were putting on her body, “would you m-maybe mind grabbing the door for me? Hands are kinda full- **shit**!”

She gasped as one of the basket handles snapped but quickly maneuvered to lean the basket on her hip. Before she could react a single cauliflower tumbled from the top of the pile, and she could only watch with a pained expression as it fell towards the ground.

Quickly though, Elliott had managed to lunge forward and grasp the vegetable, cradling it gently as he leaned back up. “That was nearly a disaster, luckily we managed to save this cauliflower from it’s untimely stone demise,” he said with a chuckle, offering a hand out to help Maria with the now broken basket. 

She was more than happy to accept his offer, and she giggled watching the look on his face once he realized just how heavy the produce was. 

Now with one hand free she was able to grasp the door’s handle and push it open, a jingle announcing their presence to Pierre who had been reading a book behind the counter. “Hey there Maria! Got a new harvest for me?” he asked with a grin, and she knew how excited he was at the prospect of having fresh food on his shelves for customers.

“Sure do! Another cauliflower harvest, I’ve got about half of ‘em on me right now, and another half will be waiting for you in the produce box back on the farm tonight,” she explained with a smile once she and Elliott got to the counter, setting down the baskets near the register.

“Oh these will be perfect for the festival tomorrow, I’ll need to call Gus and let him know he’ll have more food to work with,” Pierre replied, popping open the cash register to begin gathering the gold he’d pay back Maria with.

She, however, was very confused at the mention of a festival. “Festival? This is the first I’m hearing of this,” she wondered aloud, looking between Elliott and Pierre in the hopes of an answer.

“Ah, yes, the Egg Festival. Held once a year every spring in the town square, if my memory serves me right last year there was a veritable buffet prepared by Gus from the saloon, an egg hunt for anyone to partake in, though it was mostly a children’s venture, and the town was adorned top to bottom in festive, pastel egg-related decor,” the writer explained, tapping a finger to his chin as he spoke. 

“In so many words, yes,” Pierre agreed, collecting the gold into a small coin sack and handing it over the counter for Maria to grab, “and I kindly thank you for the produce stock.”

“There’s more where that came from,” Maria grinned, happily grasping the bag and tossing it between her hands playfully, “now if I could just buy… let’s say, thirty cauliflower seeds? I’m planning on two more harvests before prepping my farm for the summer crops.”

After collecting your seeds from the shelves and paying Pierre back, you stood by the door and watched Elliott do his bi-weekly grocery shopping, picking up essentials and food to stock in his seaside cabin. Within minutes the two were out of the store, walking side by side through the town square.

Maria had managed to convince him to let her carry some of the groceries, so now in one hand she carried a box of tea bags and in the other was a bag which held cartons of cream, packets of sugar, and honey imported from some big name brand in Zuzu City.

“I didn’t know you were a tea fan,” Maria hummed, lifting the box to inspect it’s contents, “green tea blended with peppermint. Hmm, no wonder you always smell minty.”

Elliott laughed at this, glancing down at Maria as he carried his share of the groceries, “I suppose I shall take that as a compliment? But yes, tea has been a staple of my daily life since childhood. My mother was a tea fanatic, it only made sense that this projected onto her only child.”

“You’re an only child?!” Maria exclaimed loudly, nearly yelling the question out loud, “oh I’m so jealous.”

Elliott’s brow furrowed and the writer mulled over the statement, “I do not believe that the life of an only child contains much for one to be envious of.”

“Oh yea? Try having six siblings,” Maria replied in a deadpan. 

At this he nearly choked, wide eyed, “ **six siblings?** Oh, how ever did you survive?”

Maria giggled, amused by his tone. “I spent a lot of time fighting the three older ones and helping raise the three younger ones. I’m smack dab in the middle. One older sister, two older brothers, a pair of twin younger sisters, and the youngest is my baby brother- well, he’s twelve, but I still call him the baby.”

“Could I perhaps get insight on the life of a middle child?” Elliott asked curiously once the two set foot on the bridge which connected the town center to the beach.

Maria pursed her lips, turning her gaze away from him to glance down at the river, the trickling water momentarily distracting her as she got lost in memories. “My life, hmm? Well… a lot of time being forgotten about and only being acknowledged when I was needed, once the twins were born I stopped getting the attention I needed as a child, and all my accomplishments were overshadowed by those of the older three, and my whole life I’ve been compared to all of them.”

The longer her sentence trailed on, the more bitter her tone began, an edge creeping in. She stopped herself however, both physically and from speaking. With a sigh, she dropped her shoulders and leaned against the bridge’s brick wall, cursing her emotions for getting the better of her. She could feel tears pricking at the corners of her eyes and willed them back, refusing to let Elliott see her cry.

“Maria…” Elliott mumbled, and she hated the way all her mental functions seemed to screech to a halt just from hearing her name slip off his tongue so easily. She lifted her gaze slowly to meet his, her heart aching just a bit seeing the genuine concern in his eyes, “I… I did not mean to cause you any distress with my questions, if you wish to cease the conversation I’ll gladly switch the topic. In all these weeks of knowing you I’ve never seen you so… pained.”

The writer chose his words carefully, and Maria smiled weakly at him, “It’s fine, you’re fine. No worries. Let’s just get these groceries back to your place, yea? And we can check and see if my crab pots caught anything good today, too.”

Elliott nodded and allowed her to walk ahead, and though the writer still had questions and concerns he wanted to voice, he stifled those thoughts for now. _‘Another time,’_ he thought, as he and Maria walked off the bridge and onto the all too familiar sandy shores.

* * *

The next day Maria found herself in awe at the work that’d been done overnight to decorate the town square for the annual Egg Festival. Pastel, egg themed garlands hanging in the trees and on the buildings, the streetlamps had been wrapped in ribbons, and she could already spy brightly colored eggs that’d been hidden in bushes and gardens for the eventual egg hunt.

She strolled into town wearing a pink blouse with sleeves that cut off at her elbows, and slim-fit jeans that she’d tucked into her working boots. Her curly brunette locks had been tied up in a loose ponytail, and a pink ribbon she’d had lying around in her moving boxes was wrapped around her hair, which seemed to tie the outfit together nicely.

After swinging by Pierre’s stand and being enticed into buying strawberry seeds, she wandered over to what appeared to be a buffet set up on three long tables. Every single type of egg-based meal Maria could imagine was up for grabs: boiled eggs, fried eggs, deviled eggs, egg salads, egg on rice, egg rolls- her mouth was salivating at the sight.

“Go on, farmer! Grab a plate and get your fill!” Gus invited her over with a grin, and she did just that, piling her plate high with one of every item there was.

She had a brief conversation with Marnie and Shane about all the eggs they’d supplied for the festival, and the latter seemed uncharacteristically happy for the occasion. After learning he’d had quite the hand in raising Marnie’s chickens, she understood his change in mood, finding the insight into his life interesting considering he’d shut her down every time she’d attempted to chat him up at the saloon. She’d made a point to avoid the fruit punch bowl after a snide comment Pam made, leading her to believe it’d been spiked. Once she was satisfied with all the food she’d grabbed, she walked towards an area where circular tables and seats had been set up, realizing Leah had been waving her down to sit with her and Elliott.

“Did you leave _anything_ at the buffet?” Leah teased, pointing out the farmer’s plate as she took a seat, setting her food down gently on the table.

“It’s free food, and we don’t get a lot of opportunities to feast like this,” Maria replied, sticking her tongue out before digging her fork into some very tasty looking scrambled eggs, “I grabbed as much as I could, feel free to pick off my plate.”

The three held an idle conversation as they shared the food Maria had gathered, discussing various topics; Leah’s current project, Elliott’s plan (or lack thereof) for his book, and Maria’s ideas on farm formatting and the coop she wanted to buy by spring’s end. 

Three separate times Maria had turned her head, only for her eyes to meet familiar green ones, and for Elliott to quickly avert his gaze. She bit the inside of her cheek, wondering what must’ve been going through the writer’s mind, but before she could ask her thoughts were interrupted by Lewis speaking up to make an announcement.

“The Egg Hunt will be starting in five minutes! All who want to participate must come up and grab an egg basket! This is an all ages competition, not only children have to participate!”

At this, Maria raised a brow, before looking back at her two friends with a small grin on her lips, “Why do I… kinda wanna do the egg hunt?”

“I say go for it. It’s not just the kids that play, plus there’s some kinda prize at the end,” Leah suggested with a shrug, sipping on her water as they watched Jas and Vincent run up to collect their baskets from the mayor.

“I mean yea, but if I win I’ll feel _badddd_ , like don’t I kinda have an advantage over the kids?” Maria mumbled, tapping her foot as she thought it over

“Jas and Vincent lost to Abigail last year, but they were more than fine with the outcome. I believe the two were mostly excited over how many eggs each had collected and where they’d been found,” Elliott offered, and just as he said this Abigail had walked up to Mayor Lewis to retrieve her egg basket as well.

Putting a few more seconds of thought into it, Maria grinned wickedly as she grabbed an egg roll and stood up from the table. “Alright, I’ll do it, but don’t be surprised when I wipe the floor with the competition,” she smirked, before taking a bite from the roll and practically bounding over to Lewis with childlike excitement.

“Such confidence!” Elliott called out after her, he and Leah laughing as they watched the farmer grab a basket and give the two a devilish look.

* * *

Once the egg hunt began, all six hunters were off, and Elliott had managed to watch Maria sprint towards the southern bridge in search of painted eggs.

“So what’s with you and all the staring today?”

He quickly turned his head, only to see Leah’s curious face as she arched a brow to look over at him. “Whatever do you mean?” he replied, trying to play off her question.

“Don’t think I haven’t noticed all the looking you’ve been doing at Maria, what’s up with you, hmm?” she pushed, crossing her arms and leaning over the table.

Elliott sighed, running a hand through his hair to push it back. “... Yesterday Maria and I were talking, she was gracious enough to assist me in carrying my groceries home from Pierre’s. We approached the topic of family and… well, she wasn’t exactly fond of her life experiences. I believe I encroached on a sensitive topic and I want to find a good way to apologize. I would never in my life seek to make her uncomfortable, and I’d very much like her to know she can have faith in me and seek me out if she’s ever in need of help, or someone to merely speak with,” he explained, pursing his lips.

In the background of their conversation, Lewis shouted out that it was the midway point of the egg hunt.

“Well. Tell her,” Leah replied, shrugging her shoulders.  
  
“Pardon?” Elliott furrowed his brow.

“What you just said to me, tell her that. Easy,” Leah continued, picking at the leftovers of what had previously been an egg salad.

“It is not so simple. I’m not so sure that Maria and I have a close enough bond for me to be seen as a confidant in her eyes,” Elliott mused, vaguely listening to the excited giggles of children in the background- he assumed Jas or Vincent must’ve discovered a new egg.

Leah rolled her eyes in leaned back in her chair, “well if you never talk to her about these things you’re never gonna get to that point.”

“Yes…” he murmured, “yes, I suppose you’re right.”

The sudden shrill noise of a whistle made the two jump, turning their attention back towards the mayor. “Hunts over! All hunters must return to tally their eggs!”

* * *

Maria couldn’t wipe the grin off of her face even if she wanted to as she walked back over to Elliott and Leah, sporting an oddly appropriate straw hat that’d been her gift for winning and swinging a basket of ten delicately painted eggs. “How do I look?” she asked playfully, striking a pose once she stood in front of her friends.

“Like a farmer,” Leah teased, making Maria stick her tongue out at her once more.

“I believe a celebration of my victory is in order!” she announced with a smile, tipping her hat to block out the sun, “how about we grab some drinks and head back to the farm? I don’t think I’ve had either of you over yet, my house isn’t much for now but I’ve got movies and a decent television signal. And a cat.”

“That sounds lovely,” Elliott replied, giving Maria a sweet smile which caused a faint blush to dust her cheeks.

“Great! But _first_ , there’s a giant pink rabbit plush at Pierre’s stand that’s calling my name, and I have to have it,” she giggled, picking up the trash that had been left over from their small feast, “meet me at the north-west road and we’ll start walking.”

Unknown to her, a pair of green eyes curiously watched her skip away towards Pierre. Upon hearing Leah’s laughter besides him, however, Elliott stopped his staring to face his friend.

“What?” he questioned, confused by her amusement.

“Either you _really_ want to talk to her about yesterday, or you’re starting to get a teeny tiny crush on the farmer,” she teased with a grin, standing up from the table.

The mere suggestion made Elliott’s cheeks darken to a shade of red, and before he could refute the claim Leah had walked away towards the meet up point, leaving the writer to sit there and dwell on the idea.


	4. Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bond of friendship grows stronger following the Egg Festival

After briefly mulling over Leah’s suggestion at having a ‘crush’ on the farmer, Elliott stood from the table with a sigh, shaking his head. _‘A crush? No, never, a slight infatuation would be a more believable claim, but perhaps this is simply due to her being a new addition in my life. It’s practically impossible to not be intrigued by here since, in theory, I do still know so little of her.’_

After convincing himself of this being the case, he made his way to the north-west road that would lead him to her farm. Just up ahead he could spy the farmer sat on a fence post, cradling a pink rabbit plush more than half her size in her arms, and laughing along with Leah who leaned against the same fence.

“Took you long enough,” Leah said once he stood beside them.

“Apologies, I believe I got preoccupied with my own thoughts,” he replied quickly, and before Leah could pipe up and ask about said thoughts he nodded his head towards the road, “now then, shall we get going?”

Maria nodded her head with a smile, hopping off the fence post and hoisting her new plush friend up in her arms. “Leah got us some drinks from Gus’ set up, so we’re good to go,” she explained, before spinning on her heel and heading down the path.

The three chatted as they walked down the dirt road, using the shade of the various oak and maple trees to protect against the afternoon sun still high in the sky. Halfway towards the farm however, Leah suddenly let out a loud gasp and lifted her phone to her ear.

“Hello?... Oh yes, I’ve been working on your commission… the meeting? That was scheduled for two… oh crap! I’ll get home right away to discuss the details and show you what I’ve done so far, I just got held up with an event in town, I’m so sorry… yes… mhmm… alright, give me about half an hour… thanks so much, bye!” 

Maria stood by politely, knowing better than to speak up during someone else’s phone call, but Elliott gave his artist friend a look of confusion, standing close enough to her to hear _no_ sound coming from her device.

Quickly, Leah pocketed the phone, offering an apologetic look as she turned to look at Maria, “I’m so sorry, my client called and I totally blanked on the fact that we had a meeting today so I could show the progress on my current piece.”

“No worries, work is important. We’ll have plenty of chances to hang out, and I’m sure Elliott and I will be just fine,” the farmer replied, smiling sweetly as she waved her friend off.

Leah turned on her heel, only to face Elliott who looked down at her suspiciously. “It is an extraordinary coincidence that you are to receive a phone call at this very moment which would whisk you away, leaving Maria and I alone,” he mumbled, dropping his voice as he stared his friend down, “Yet we both know that there was no voice on the other end of that call.”

“You should be thanking me, I’m giving you an excuse to have alone time,” she replied with a cheeky grin, lifting the ales she’d bought from Gus and handing them over to the know disgruntled writer, “if I find out that you didn’t talk to her about what you need to talk about, I’m going to tell her _myself_.”

And with that, Leah walked off, shouting a goodbye over her shoulder to Maria, leaving the farmer and Elliott alone once more.

“What was that about?” Maria asked curiously with a tilt of her head.

“What was what about?” Elliott quickly retorted, perhaps _too_ quick.

“All the whispering,” she teased, taking a few steps closer to him, “are you two hiding something from me?”

Elliott’s face flushed and he shook his head, “no, of course n-”

He was cut off by Maria’s sudden laughter, watching as she giggled sweetly, “Oh, you should’ve seen your face. I’m just messing with you Elliott, c’mon, you’ve got a cat to meet.”

Relieved, Elliott’s red cheeks cooled once he realised she wasn’t truly suspicious of Leah’s sudden exit. Once Maria’s small giggle fit ceased, she gave him a wide smile and nodded her head towards the path, inviting him to walk beside her as they continued their trek to the farm.

* * *

“Where is that little rascal? He was sitting on the porch when I left for the festival this morning,” Maria wondered aloud, gripping the house key to unlock the door and invite Elliott inside.

“Are you not afraid of your feline friend getting lost or running away?” he asked curiously as he peeked his head inside the house.

Maria shook her head, following after him and setting the big plush bunny down beside the door, “no, not really. He’s an outdoor cat either way, Marnie brought him here because she’d found him on the side of the highway though. She thought that the farm would be more than enough space to satisfy his need to explore everyday, plus I feed him, so I know he’ll come back to me.”

A sudden, loud meow caught both of their attention.

“Speak of the devil,” Maria laughed, turning towards her small bed in the corner only to see Orion curled up on her pillow, eyeing Elliott warily.

Walking towards the bed, she scooped the Burmese up into her arms and scratched behind his ears to calm him. “Don’t worry, Elliott is a friend,” she mumbled, before glancing up at the writer, “come over here and let him smell your hand, just don’t put it too close to his face or he might scratch you.” 

The auburn haired man nodded, setting down their drinks on the rounded wood table and approaching Orion cautiously. He lifted a hand and the feline tilted his head up, sniffing curiously before letting out a deep purr and pushing his forehead against Elliott’s open palm.

“It appears he approves,” he smiled, moving his hand to pet behind Orion’s ears.

“He sure does. Actually, he took to you faster than he did me, he nearly scratched my eye out on the first night,” she muttered, pouting her lips a tad, “but that's in the past. Now he’s my little fur baby, who gets fed the extra fish I catch on my trips.”

“Sounds like feline heaven,” Elliott chuckled, before pulling his hand back (causing Orion to mewl and reach a paw out in the hopes of receiving more pets). The writer took a step back and gazed around the small house, humming thoughtfully. “I’m not sure why, but I harbored a strange preconceived notion that your farmhouse must’ve been similar to any of the abodes in town. I do hope you don’t take offense when I say that in actuality, it’s quite similar to my, er… _shack_ on the beach,” he mused with a slight chuckle towards the end.

Maria laughed and shook her head once more, bending down to gently place Orion on the floor. “Don’t worry, I’m not offended. But nah, this place is as simple as can be. This one room has my bed, the dining table, chair, television, a couch which is closer to a love-seat really, the fireplace with a pot that I use as a makeshift kitchen, and the only other room is through that door in the back corner which has my very small and cramped bathroom,” she explained, pointing at each of the features she listed. 

“But, I’ve got plans. I’ve been talking to Robin, once my silo and chicken coop have been built I’m saving up for a house upgrade. She’s gonna extend the building and split the living room and bedroom in half, build a small kitchen attached to the living room, and upgrade my bathroom. Plus I think she’s going to contact a good plumber she knows from Zuzu City to fix my pipes, and, if I have the gold at the time she says she knows a guy who can get me a good air conditioning and heating unit. The air conditioning’s probably not getting installed until late summer, so it’ll be a bit late, but the heater is going to be _so_ necessary for late fall and winter. I’ve been told about how cold it gets in the valley during those months, I know I’m gonna need it,” she continued, taking a few steps backwards to lean against the wooden frame of her bed as she spoke.

Elliott nodded his head, “ah, yes, I myself was not exactly prepared for winter this last year. The conditions of my cabin were… less than favorable, to put it mildly. I’ve considered investing in a heating system myself, but upon budgeting out my savings it always seems I never have enough for such amenities.”

“Well, if you don’t have a heater installed by the time winter comes around, you’re always invited to stay here,” Maria suggested, blush dusting her cheeks as she smiled at him shyly.

The writer looked slightly shocked at this, his eyes wide as what seemed to be a grin tugged his lips up. ‘ _Shit, was that too much? I hope I’m not being too forward-’_ she panicked in her mind, but her thoughts were cut off by Elliott speaking up once more.

“This would actually be greatly appreciated, I shall consider that offer once the need arises,” he smiled, turning to walk towards the wooden chair besides her dining table for a seat. 

As he moved Maria found herself staring without realizing, taking in his physique and admiring the way his brightly colored coat seemed to be perfectly tailored to fit him. Once he was sitting comfortably she noticed she’d been staring and tore her gaze away, the blush on her cheeks growing darker.

“Now, I know we retired to your home as a means to celebrate your egg hunt victory, but there is a matter which I’d like to discuss with you… if you’re comfortable speaking on it, of course?” he brought up, leaving the latter half of his statement hanging in the air like a question.

“Oh, um,” she mumbled, shifting her legs so she sat cross legged at the end of the bed, “yea sure, what’s up?”

Her voice wavered, making it obvious that she was nervous about the idea of a serious discussion, and she chastised herself mentally for being so easy to read.

“Well, in the last day I’ve found myself being rather concerned for you in a way. It was clear to me that our conversation in the town yesterday seemed to bring up rather unpleasant thoughts for you, which was a result I never intended for. Now I’m aware that we haven’t exactly been friends for all that long, it has only been a few weeks since you moved into the valley. But, it is my hope that you do see me as a friend. I’d like to be someone you can find comfort in speaking to, who you can be open with. I’d never want to force such private information out of you, but if you ever do want to divulge this information to me, I’d be more than happy to hear it and help you through whatever it is you’re experiencing,” he explained, looking into Maria’s eyes as he spoke with the most genuine expression she’d ever seen.

Suddenly she felt overwhelmed with emotion, and as he was talking hot tears had begun welling up in her eyes. Once he finished, the floodgates broke, and she quickly brought a hand to her face to wipe the tears once they started rolling down her cheeks. “Don’t worry- these are good tears,” she quickly said, seeing the way his smile dropped at the sight of her crying.

He gave her a few moments to regain her composure, which she was more than grateful for.

“Sorry,” she mumbled once she’d recovered for the most part, “it’s just been… so long since anyone’s been so… good to me? In even just a friendly way? It’s messy to explain, and you’ll learn eventually, but… well, I left more than just a shitty job behind when I left the city, y’know?” 

Elliott nodded at this, but didn’t interrupt when she continued speaking. “I would love to become better friends though… you said you want me to find comfort in speaking to you… do I have that effect on you?’

“To an incredible extent, yes,” he answered with a gentle smile, “I find that I can be myself around you, with all my quirks and ‘oddball’ traits. I cannot do the same around the other townsfolk.”

“I’m sure you feel the same way around Leah, though,” Maria mumbled.

Elliott paused at this, pursing his lips and casting his gaze towards the ground. “Well… yes and no. Leah is one of my closest friends, and I’ve known her since I first stepped foot in this valley. But, it is slightly different with you. Something about our bond is… tender, in a way,” he explained in a soft voice.

“Yea, I think I get what you mean,” she murmured, biting her lip and finding it hard to make her eyes meet his once more.

There was an air of silence for just a few seconds, a strange new tension setting in the air between the two. Luckily, Elliott changed the topic, quickly standing up and looking down at Maria with a wide grin.

“Now then, we came here to celebrate, did we not? And we should certainly make use of these ales before they become spoiled,” he suggested, pulling two drinks from the box and stepping forward, offering one bottle to Maria.

“I think that’s a brilliant idea,” she replied, taking the bottle happily and grinning back just as wide.

* * *

Just a small little gift, a doodle I did of Maria in case anyone's curious to get a better idea of what she looks like:

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story has 100 hits already, which makes me incredibly happy!!
> 
> I hope y'all are enjoying it so far~


	5. The Unpacked Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elliott spends the evening at Maria's house, and when curiosity strikes more than just a moving box gets unpacked

“What- how on Earth did she do that, it’s only been minutes since she put the batter in the oven, this is simply not possible,” Elliott sputtered, watching the television in disbelief.

Maria giggled, taking a swig of her ale and swirling the half-empty bottle in her hand, “you know all the cooking on these shows is done ahead of time, yea?”

“Pardon?” he quickly asked, turning his head to look over at her.

The two were seated on the couch (though really it was more like a love-seat as Maria had previously pointed out). They brought over the blankets from her bed and made themselves cozy, though with the size of the couch, there was little space between them, their legs brushing up against each other whenever either one made the slightest of movements. 

They’d busted out the ales bought from Gus at the festival and had started skimming through various television channels (Maria was shocked to hear that it had been over a year since the last time Elliott had taken the time to sit back and watch, well, anything since his cabin had no cable and his only access to the internet was via his phone or the laptop at Leah’s house). 

They’d settled on watching The Queen of Sauce, today’s episode being centered around various types of cakes and pastries.

“Ha, yea, all the food is made before the show. All the ingredient mixing and prepping she shows us is just to explain how to make the thing, it’s all for the show, but the finished meals are already done,” she explained, incredibly amused by the confusion on Elliott’s face.

“This is simply preposterous! Where is the artistic integrity? My, I would have never agreed to watch this program if I was aware of the sham it was beforehand!” he ranted in an incredibly exaggerated manner, throwing Maria into a fit of giggles and causing her to nearly drop her bottle of ale.

“Elliott I think… I think you’ve had too much,” she managed to say through her laughter, noticing how the writer had already downed two bottles.

He shook his head in disagreement. “Nonsense, I am more than capable of handling my alcohol. Now then-” he began, abruptly standing up from the couch and nearly tripping but catching himself before Maria could notice, “I have been staring at this box for the last ten minutes and I am simply dying of curiosity to know of it’s contents.”

The farmer was confused, before spotting the box he was referring to. In the corner of her house was a moving box she’d neglected to unpack. She tried picking at her memories to see if she could remember what was packed within it, but nothing came to mind. “Hmm… well, I can’t think of what’s in there, and it’s not labeled… wanna help me unpack it?” she asked him with a smile.

Working together, the two lugged the box over to the couch, and for a moment the only sound was a box cutter swiftly slicing through packing tape. Sitting back down and flipping the top flaps open revealed what was sat on top… a painting.

A weak smile tugged at Maria’s lips as she gripped the aged canvas and pulled it out of the box. It was a painting of a beach. Her skill level was amateur at best when she created the piece as a teenager, but you could easily pick out the tide pools that the waves rose upon, a small seaside house, palm trees that littered the shore line, and a setting sun that painted the sky orange and peachy tones.

“Did you paint this?” Elliott asked in a soft tone, tracing his fingers across the few dotted clouds in the sky.

She nodded her head, flipping the canvas over to show her full name scrawled on the back of the board.

“Maria Lucia Ortiz… what a gorgeous name,” he murmured, causing her to blush and look away, flustered, “can you tell me where this is?”

“This,” Maria began, flipping the canvas over once more to look at the painting, “is my childhood home. It’s on the complete opposite side of the country, a small coastal town in the deep south. My family and I lived on the beach, and everyday was like waking up in a dream. I’d wake up before everyone else just to watch the sunrise and I’d sneak out of the house during the summer to watch the turtle migrations.”

“That does sound incredibly lovely. When did your family leave?”

A shaky sigh escaped Maria’s lips. She’d been waiting for this question. She set the painting down and leaned back in the love seat, pursing her lips. “We left when I was seven. It was late Summer and my mother was pregnant with the twins. The town was warned of an oncoming storm, a tropical depression, but the town had faced those many times and our Mayor was confident that we’d be just fine. But, the tropical depression turned into a storm… which turned into a hurricane. Category five.

“That hurricane… it destroyed the town. I have few memories of that night, but the main one I do recall is heavy rain battering the side of the house and roaring winds, and the next thing I know the roof of the house is gone and all I can see is flashes of lightning as our home is torn apart.”

“Oh… Maria, I’m so sorry,” Elliott murmured once she finished explaining, gently placing a hand on her shoulder to console her.

“I’m fine, I’ve had years to recover. I consider myself lucky that my family survived… others in town weren’t as lucky. But, we escaped safely, and I left that town with only my memories and a new phobia of thunder and lightning,” she replied, glancing up at him and giving him a small smile of reassurance. 

“Astraphobia?” 

“Yes,” she nodded, “the middle to late parts of summer can be absolute hell. It was worse when I was a child, after going through the hurricane the sound of a thunderclap left me paralyzed with fear. I can manage it better now though, so long as I have a proper distraction I can work through a storm and block it out, and I wear sound proof headphones if the storm goes on through the night when I need to sleep.”

Elliott hummed as he listened to her explain, before turning his head to look towards the contents of the box once more. He reached a hand in to pull out an envelope, and glanced over at Maria to see if he had permission to open it. She nodded, and he swiftly pulled the tab up, revealing a handful of photographs within the envelope.

“Oh no…” she muttered, suddenly remembering what these pictures were.

Each photograph showed a younger, teenage Maria in various outfits; a coal worker, a forest imp, a teacher, a masquerade dress, and a Victorian era ball gown, just to name a few.

“Spirit’s Eve costumes?” he asked with a grin, seeing the visible embarrassment on her face.

“Nope… theatre costumes,” she sighed, pulling out a binder from the box and flipping it open to reveal old highschool playbills for each of the shows she’d taken part in.

“I never took you for the theatrical type,” the writer smiled, taking one last look at her pictures before slipping them back into the envelope.

“Oh I was more than just into theatre, I wanted to grow up and be an actress,” she laughed, pulling out the playbill for their Spring Show her senior year, “I was far more artistic in highschool. I drew, I painted, I acted, I sang, I danced… I did a lot more than I do now, that’s for sure.”

“May I ask what caused you to stop?” Elliott pondered, looking into her eyes.

Maria bit her lip, and thought about it for a moment before huffing out a small laugh, “I’ve told one traumatic story today, I think I’ll save that one for another.”

“Understandable,” Elliott murmured, before turning his attention back to the box, “however I am still curious to see the other contents of this secret collection you’ve hidden.”

The next hour or so went by in a blur of laughter and nostalgia. At some point Maria had shifted from sitting on the couch to the floor, cross legged as she flipped through a photo album showcasing her freshman year of college (“Oh Yoba, this was during orientation week.” “Why are you drenched in navy blue and gold paint?” “School colors, they thought a good way for freshmen to get acquainted and let loose before the semester started was by letting us have a paint fight. Keep in mind, we were spending those nights in the dorms, so it was on the school to clean the mess once we left.”)

Elliott pulled out a folder with ‘star maps’ scrawled on the front in permanent marker and curiously peeked through it’s contents, pulled out papers with detailed chartings of constellations and planet placements, the dates of the nights these were charted marked in the bottom left corner of the sheet. “Were these all done by hand?” 

“Well, yea, but I used the internet to help of course. Living in the city, I wasn’t really able to see all the stars with the light pollution, but I’ve loved the stars and constellations ever since I was a kid. So I charted them throughout the year, and I memorized what was in the sky even if I couldn’t see it,” Maria nodded, closing the photo album and setting it down on the floor.

“Fascinating. Have you done any amount of stargazing now that you live in the valley? The light pollution of Zuzu City is practically non-existent here. And I must add that in the Winter the nighttime sky is particularly spectacular,” Elliott suggested as he looked over her charted maps.

“In Winter we’ll be able to see Orion, my cat’s namesake. There will also be both Canis Major and Minor and Columba. Luckily, if we wait until nighttime, we’ll be able to see my constellation,” she mused, more than happy to ramble about one of her passions.

“Your constellation?” he inquired, the curiosity obvious in his voice.

Maria grinned, “Cancer, my astrological sign. I’m not super into astrology, I don’t swear by the philosophy, but it can be fun to indulge in. I actually have a tattoo of it if you’d like to see?”

She waited for Elliott to nod before adjusting, uncrossing her legs and getting up onto her knees. She turned around, still on the floor but moving so she sat in front of his spot on the couch. Reaching a hand behind her head, she gripped her hair and tugged it over her shoulder, before using her other hand to grasp the back of her blouse’s fabric and tug it down.

Doing so revealed a cleanly drawn detail at the top of her spine, between her shoulder blades. The five stars of the constellation Cancer were drawn onto her skin as fine pinpoints with thin lines connecting them together. Beneath the drawing of the constellation was it’s astrological glyph, a swirling symbol.

Facing away from Elliott, she couldn’t see him to be able to read his facial expressions as she normally would, so she had absolutely no idea what was going through his mind. She couldn’t even be sure if he was actually looking, until she felt a sudden press at the base of her neck.

She gasped loudly, and upon hearing Elliott’s rushed apology tumble out of his mouth did she realize that what she’d felt was his _fingers_ on her skin.

His touch was like fire, and she couldn’t stop the intense blush that made its way to her face.

“I’m terribly sorry, that was far too forward of me I have no idea what I was thinking-”

“Don’t worry! Um, it’s fine, I… I didn’t mind,” she quickly replied, her voice trailed off and growing quiet.

There was yet again another tension between them, which she attempted to rectify by clearing her throat and turning to face him with a shy smile, “that’s actually… not my only tattoo… if you maybe wanted to see the others?”

She was able to see the blush dusting Elliott’s cheeks and was happy to know he was just as embarrassed as she was. Happily, she jumped into an explanation and showcase of her other small tattoos; there was the owl behind her right ear which was typically hidden by her hair, a peony on her ankle which she mentioned was her favorite type of flower, and a simple black heart on her left wrist (“It was my first one, got it as soon as I turned eighteen. My parents hated it, but at least I went small.”)

“And there’s actually um… one more. This one’s in a bit of an odd place though,” she mumbled, pushing herself up and off of the ground to stand at her full height in front of Elliott.

“You don’t need to force yourself to show me, even if I am far too curious for my own good,” Elliott murmured, his gaze softening as he looked up into her eyes, “whatever you’re comfortable with will always be more than enough to satisfy me.”

Anxiously, she swallowed her fear before giving him a weak grin. ‘ _C’mon, this is just Elliott and I’m just showing him my tattoos, stop making this weird,’_ she grumbled in her head.

Willing her hands to stop shaking, she reached for the bottom of her blouse and lifted it, showing off her tan midriff (and her navel piercing which she’d previously neglected to mention). Letting the fabric sit below her breasts, she grasped the waistline of jeans and tugged them down _only_ enough to show her right hip bone and no more. On her hip was an intricate tattoo of a crescent moon sat atop fully bloomed roses, each petal shaded with meticulous detail.

It was the tattoo she loved most, yet also the one no one ever got to see.

Elliott was quiet as he examined the tattoo, and Maria only grew more and more flustered by the second, shyly stood there beneath his gaze.

“... May I?” he finally asked, and she didn’t even dare to let herself attempt to speak, merely nodding her head.

Once he’d received permission, Elliott gingerly lifted a hand, and Maria had to stop herself from shivering once his fingers brushed over the curve of the moon. His touches were delicate and careful, the same way one would admire an antique made of glass.

She was biting her lip so hard she was sure it would be bleeding, but she didn’t care. She hadn’t realized up until this very moment that it’d been more than two years since anyone had touched her in a way more intimate than shaking hands or a chaste side hug.

Elliott’s thumb brushed over one of the roses as she momentarily lost herself in her thoughts, and a shaky sigh managed to slip out of her.

Immediately, her eyes snapped to meet his, but before either could make a comment a loud mewling noise filled the room, and the writer quickly retracted his hand.

Maria hated how she already missed his touch, craving to feel his hand again, craving to feel it trace _more_ places, and as she mentally chastised herself she turned to look at the source of the noise.

Orion was pacing besides the unlit fireplace, screaming out needy meows and growls and occasionally pawing at his food bowl.

“Alright alright, I get it, you’re hungry, stop yelling at me please,” Maria sighed, tugging her blouse down and swooping the annoyed feline off of the floor.

“Oh my, I hadn’t even realized how late it’s gotten,” Elliott said as she turned back around.

Confused, she chanced a glance at her phone, eyes going wide once she read ‘8:42 PM’ on the electronic screen. She looked towards the front window of the farmhouse and sure enough, the sun had already set, and the sky was a murky, deep indigo.

“Oh shit, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you so long,” Maria apologized as she set Orion down, letting the Burmese sit on her bed as he impatiently awaited his dinner.

“Please, _never_ apologize for keeping me company and spending precious time with me. _Ever_. I would hate to know our meetings are something you regret,” Elliott quickly retorted as he stood from the couch.

She pouted slightly, watching dejected as he made his way towards the door, “I would never regret this, Elliott.”

“Perfect, nor would I,” he grinned, opening the door and letting in the ambient sounds of night.

“Will you be alright getting home on your own?” she asked with concern.

“Of course. Have a good night and a brilliant tomorrow, Maria,” he murmured sweetly, eyes meeting her own and _oh_ there was just something about the way her voice sounded coming from his mouth.

She blushed and crossed her arms in an attempt to hide the flustered embarrassment she was still feeling from moments earlier, “good night, Elliott.”

He gave her one last gentle smile before shutting the door, which was quickly followed by an incredibly exasperated meow from the feline on her bed.

“Hush, I’m getting you your food now, your little furry brat.”

And as Maria stood there, staring at the closed wooden door, she came to a terrifying realization that her heart was beginning to crave more than just a close friendship with Elliott.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi wow I know I literally just updated the other day, but I just had the sudden need to write and continue on with the plot
> 
> I don't know why but the idea of writing about *hand on skin* was just far too exciting for me lol
> 
> Things got a lil bit spicy, but I cannot *wait* to flex my true spice potential in future episodes


	6. Progress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Progress through the season of Spring is made, and the Flower Dance is right around the corner. As Maria makes strides on her farm, however, thoughts of a certain writer begin to plague her mind.

“Stop pecking your sister’s eyes, you’re going to be living in a coop together, violence isn’t gonna settle your arguments. I should know, I had a college roommate.”

Maria sighed as she looked down at the cloth-lined wooden box before her, desperately trying to get two young brown chicks to remain calm before she transported them to her farm.

“Is that the bigger one you’re trying to wrangle over there? She was the first to hatch in her brood and has been a hassle since day one,” Marnie chuckled as she walked behind the counter to ring up the livestock order.

It was a warm Spring day and in the four weeks since the Egg Festival Maria had made substantial progress on her farm. She’d managed to collect enough wood for Robin to build her a brand new silo and as well as a chicken coop. The coop had been built besides the rundown barn her grandfather once housed milk cows in, and she spent two days building fencing that enclosed both buildings to make a pasture for all her future animals to happily graze in. She had plans to rebuild the barn, but knew that was likely months away.

“Miss Maria! What’re you gonna name those two chickens?” a cheery voice called out, and the farmer turned to see sweet little Jas running up to her, practically bouncing from excited curiosity. 

Maria tapped her chin and put on an expression of deep thought before looking down at the little girl, “well, my cat is named Orion, which is a constellation. If I keep naming all my animals after constellations, I’m thinking I’ll name the big one Cygnus and the smaller one Corvus.”

“What’re Cy-gus and Cor-vis?” Jas asked, confused.

The farmer laughed, “No no, Cyg **nus** and Cor **vus**. They’re both bird constellations, maybe someday I can bring you and Vincent stargazing so I can show you.”

The young girl gasped before bounding over to Marnie, “Oh auntie, can I _pleaseeee_ go look at the stars with Miss Maria? Please please please?”

“Jas, it’s the middle of the day, I don’t think you’ll be seeing any stars. Other than the sun,” a gruff voice pitched in.

Maria turned her head to see Shane stood in the doorway to the kitchen with a Joja Cola in hand. He eyed the farmer warily before letting out a huff of air and shuffling away into what she assumed was his bedroom.

She attempted to give him a quick hello as she rarely saw him outside the saloon drinking himself into a stupor every night, but the man clearly didn’t want to be bothered as he walked away.

“I didn’t mean _nowwww_ Shane,” the young girl called out as he shut the door, crossing her arms over her frilly purple dress, “Oh! But can I go with you to see the new coop, Miss Maria?”

She turned to look up at the farmer and give her the biggest puppy-dog eyes that Maria just couldn’t say no to- luckily, she was saved by Marnie clicking her tongue and waggling her finger.

“Oh no, little missy. You’ve got weekend work from Miss Penny that I know you haven’t finished, go on into your room while I finish selling these chicks,” the rancher instructed.

Jas dropped her arms and pouted, but before leaving Maria squatted down to be eye level with the young girl. “Don’t worry, I know that on clear nights during the summer we’ll be able to see dozens of constellations in the sky. I’ll take you stargazing then, yea? We can bring snacks and I’ll show you how to map the stars,” she promised, holding out her hand and extending her pinky finger.

A happy grin spread on the girl’s face and she locked her pinky with Maria’s while nodding her head quickly. Then with a giggle she twirled on her feet and skipped off to her room, hopefully to complete whatever homework Penny had left her.

“Now then, those two chicks are of the Golden Comet breed. They’ve reached their juvenile stage so technically they’re no longer chicks, they’re pullets. Give them about six weeks to get used to you and their new home and they’ll be laying eggs before you know it,” Marnie explained with a smile once Maria returned to the counter, “you have enough feed right? You know you can always buy more from me too.”

“I’m fairly sure I’ve got enough. Also, remind me to buy a heater for the coop in the fall, I don’t have the money for one now but I’ll get it then,” she requested, carefully grabbing the wooden box that housed the chicks.

Marnie nodded and the two women wished each other goodbyes and good days, and the farmer was soon walking down the familiar dirt path back up to her farm. The last weeks of Spring had arrived, but the sweltering heat of Summer had settled in early this year.

_‘Oh yea… I’m gonna need AC soon,’_ she thought as sweat began beading on her forehead.

Chirping caught her attention as she stepped through the threshold to enter the farmland. Looking down into the box, she was met with two pairs of beady eyes that studied her. 

“Don’t worry girls, you’ll be in your new home soon. I’ll have to introduce you to the cat, let’s hope that he doesn’t try to eat either of you,” she explained, carefully stepping over jagged rocks and logs which she hadn’t cleared from the land yet.

After a few brief moments she’d arrived at the fence which surrounded the old barn and new coop, creating an enclosure for all the animals she’d eventually own. The fence was made of wood, but she’d been sure to wrap chicken wire around the fence posts that rose to about her knees, ensuring that the young chickens wouldn’t be able to make a run for it when she wasn’t around to supervise them. 

Balancing the box on her hip, she unlocked the fence gate and quickly stepped into the pasture, shutting the gate behind her and approaching the chicken coop. The building was by no means massive, roughly half the size of the glorified shed she called her home. It was made entirely of wood and stone collected on her farm, and within the coop itself was a low to the ground trough where she’d already placed some feed in, as well as a waterer which would fill itself with water as the pullets drank from it. A few high windows let the afternoon sunlight stream in.

“Alright girls, here we are,” Maria said with a smile, kneeling down and gently grasping both chicks in either hand before carefully placing them on the coop’s wooden floor, “your new home. What do you think?”

Cygnus, the bigger chick, took a few small steps before chirping loudly and running towards the food trough, flapping her little wings as she ran. Corvus seemed far shier and cautious of her surroundings, turning to look up at Maria with curious eyes.

The farmer smiled and sat down cross legged on the floor, carefully running her fingers down the pullet’s head and back, “don’t worry, girl. I know that moving somewhere new can be really scary, but I’m sure you’ll like it here. When I have the money I can bring some new friends here for you, and I promise that I’ll give you the best, comfiest bird lifestyle one can have.”

A small, chittering noise suddenly drew her attention. She turned her head to see Orion standing in the coop’s doorway, his head tilted as he looked at the two birds curiously. Maria knew that by the way his tail was hooked that his temperament wasn’t aggressive but mostly friendly, but she shooed him out of the coop either way.

“Oh no you don’t, these girls need to get used to their new home, out you go,” she quickly said, hopping up onto her feet as she ushered the Burmese out of the building.

She quickly checked to make sure both chickens were comfortable before stumbling out of the coop and shutting the door behind her. A sigh passed her lips as she slipped her phone from her back pocket and checked the time: 1:33 in the afternoon.

_‘Hmm… enough time to work on clearing some farm land, I’m gonna need more wood if I want that house upgrade. Should be able to get a few trees down before meeting Abigail at the saloon like I promised,_ ’ she planned out in her mind, pocketing her phone before heading out of the enclosure.

* * *

Beads of sweat dripped down Maria’s brow as she swung her copper axe once more, the satisfying crunch of wood ringing out as the trunk of the tree began to tip over, eventually landing on the ground with a loud _thud_.

She’d spent the last two hours cutting down tree after tree, the work rewarding her with plenty of wood (some of which she’d stockpile for firewood, which she knew would be necessary in the colder months), saplings which could be easily turned into snack bars, and the satisfying sight of her farmland slowly coming together as she expanded it.

Despite the physically demanding nature of chopping trees, the activity left her mind free to wander, and wander it did. The last few weeks she’d been struggling, battling her own thoughts after her… _encounter_ with Elliott after the Egg Festival.

For a few brief moments that day she’d almost tricked herself into believing she’d begun crushing on the man. _‘Impossible,’_ she attempted to assure herself, _‘no, I can’t like him, I simply liked the way it felt when he touched me. That’s it.’_

This technically wasn’t wrong, as whenever she thought back to how his nimble finger tips danced and traced over her skin, she’d shiver with guilty delight. It’d been quite some time since she’d been anything close to intimate with everyone, and though she’d hate to ruin a budding friendship by throwing her emotional baggage onto him, she’d be kidding herself if she said it _hadn’t_ felt nice to be touched in such a gentle way.

Frowning, she pushed these thoughts from her mind as she raised her axe, splitting the thick oak’s trunk into smaller logs which could be easily carried back to the farmhouse. Setting her tool aside, she wiped her forehead with the back of her gloved hand and began gathering the wood she’d just cut up.

_‘If I stay here dwelling on this friendship, I’m never going to get the saloon on time to work on the other friendships I’m trying to develop,’_ she scoffed in her mind, mentally chastising herself before heading home to store the logs and have a much needed shower.

* * *

The clacking sound of plastic on wood was followed by a loud groan and a series of giggles from both Maria and Abigail.

“Seriously? I thought I had that lined up perfectly,” Sam pouted, resting his pool stick against the table and looking up at the farmer expectantly.

She’d finally taken up the trio of friends on their offer to play pool at the saloon, and after making a few snide comments on her hidden skills she was currently showing Sam up with surprising expertise. Abigail was more than happy to watch from the sidelines, taking the time to look up from her phone and snicker at the blond boy’s frustration. Sebastian was also amused, he simply made it less obvious as he leaned against the wall, occasionally using his own pool stick to teasingly poke Sam whenever he’d walk by. 

Maria eyed the pool table, seeing an opportunity to knock the eight-ball into the right corner pocket. Leaning over the table, she aligned her shot with the cue ball and let out a steady breath, pulling the pool stick back and-

“So are you gonna be dancing with anyone next Wednesday?”

The farmer’s breath hitched and she nearly screwed up her shot, stopping the stick just before it hit the cue ball. “P-pardon?” she stammered out, not even meaning to say that specific word (it was something she’d picked up from Elliott without realizing).

Abigail rolled her eyes and put her phone down, “the Flower Dance is next Wednesday. Do you even have a dress yet? Normally all the girls participating wear white, if you don’t have an outfit I’m pretty sure Emily wouldn’t mind sewing something for you, she loves helping Mayor Lewis plan this Festival.”

“Oh, no I don’t really have any plans,” she mumbled, re-aligning her shot before confidently hitting the cue ball, the familiar plastic clack as it bounced against the eight-ball, leading the black sphere to roll into the corner pocket and score her another point, “getting dressed up does sound nice though, even if I don’t end up doing any dancing.”

Once she stood up straight she could see Sam’s scowl as Sebastian smugly ticked another point beneath her name on an old dusty blackboard hung up on the wall.

After a few more rounds Maria wished the trio goodbye as she put away the pool set, making sure the saloon’s side room was tidy before heading over the bar. She waved to Shane, who grumbled and took a swig of beer rather than responding. 

Hopping onto one of the bar stools, Emily was quick to bound over to greet the farmer with a wide smile, “hello there Maria, what can I get for you tonight?”

“Actually, I was told that you could hook me up with a dress for the Flower Dance. I know it’s kind of short notice, but I’d be willing to pay for an outfit,” she responded, sitting her elbows on the table and resting her head in her hands as she spoke.

Emily’s eyes lit up as she listened to the explanation, and she let out an excited squeal, “oh no worries, I’d love to make a dress for you! I already finished my own dress and have a few final alterations to do on Haley’s, but if I take your measurements tomorrow that should give me plenty of time to get something done.”

Maria felt relief wash over her, “perfect, I can swing by your place in the morning for those measurements.”

“I’ll be sure to brew some tea for us,” the bartender replied with a cheeky wink.

“You’re too kind,” the farmer giggled, easing into the conversation.

The two women bantered back and forth, and around ten o’clock goodbyes were exchanged as Maria stepped out of the saloon, a skip in her step as she set off down the stone path. She found herself rather excited for next week’s festivities, not fully knowing why.

_‘I don’t really need a reason to be excited, do I?’_ she questioned herself, _‘there’s no harm in letting myself be giddy just for the fun of it.’_

Despite this carefree way of thinking, the farmer had brief visions of the Flower Dance that night once she was tucked away into bed, specifically imagining dancing happily in the arms of a certain auburn-haired writer.

* * *

Soooo, I've been doing some brainstorming for this story (I have a lot planned for the Summer section of Year 1). There's a specific scene I'm very excited to write involving a _water park_ so I thought I'd give y'all a little glance at what's to come:

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been considering changing the name of this story (the current one is more of a place holder, if anything), and also I'm probably going to update the description. Spice it up a lil' bit, y'know?
> 
> For the story title I'm considering something like: 'Mirroring the Endless Night', it's gonna be a reference to a conversation held in a future section of this story. As for the description, I thinking of replacing it with a snippet of writing from the first chapter.
> 
> Also, apologies for no 'real' Elliott content in this chapter, our favorite writer will return very soon, worry not :))
> 
> Kudos and comments are appreciated, as always!! I love seeing people's reactions to my writing lol


	7. The Flower Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Flower Dance has finally arrived, but it's not only the flora that's beginning to bloom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaa heck this chapter took a while to get done, had a super busy week. It's over 4k words though, in an attempt to make up for the late-ness
> 
> Also, this chapter has a lot of 'point of view' shifts- mostly just switching from a Maria-centered perspective to an Elliott-centered one, I hope it doesn't confuse anyone tho

“Crops are watered, I checked on the chickens, I fed Orion… I’m pretty sure that’s everything,” Maria listed aloud, the old porch steps creaking under her weight as she walked up to her front door.

Briefly pausing, she checked the time on her phone and panicked upon seeing the numbers 8:36 flash on her screen. ‘ _Shit, the dance starts at nine o’clock.’_

Dashing into her house, she unceremoniously stripped off her cotton shirt and denim shorts, grumbling at how sweaty she already was despite it being early in the morning. ‘ _Damn this early heat,’_ she grumbled, shrugging off her undergarments as she stepped into the bathroom and fiddled with knobs that would send water pouring out of the shower head.

One quick shower later Maria was toweling herself off as she walked back into the single room that was her house. Slipping on a fresh pair of panties and the only strapless bra she owned, she let out a content sigh as she picked up the white dress which had been carefully laid out across her wooden table.

She smiled fondly as she unzipped the back of the dress, treating the fabric with gentle care as she stepped into it and pulled it up over her torso and chest. 

Emily had insisted that she make the farmer's dress unique, despite Maria insisting the opposite: “No, no! Each of the girl’s dresses is different; Haley’s is similar to something that’d be worn in a ballet performance with a sheer floral pattern, mine is a lot more minimal with a longer skirt, Abigail’s skirt is high in the front and low in the back. C’mon, just lemme know what you want. Maybe something with breathable fabric or- oh! How would you feel about sheer sleeves?”

After about an hour of discussion and brainstorming, Emily had decided on and sketched her final design for Maria: a knee length dress which was tailored to fit snug on her waist, nicely showing off her natural curves. The skirt billowed out in folds, floating beautifully whenever she spun on her heels. The sleeves were off the shoulder and short, allowing for easy arm movement. The fabric breathed nicely, which the farmer was more than thankful for due to the warm weather.

Once the dress was zipped up and sitting snug on her form, she walked back into the bathroom to give herself a look over and make final adjustments. Deciding to keep it simple, she left her hair down, knowing it’d air dry and curl nicely by the time she got to the marked off location in Cindersap Forest. 

Makeup wasn’t something she normally wore, especially now that she worked on the farm and would typically sweat off any products she put on, but today was a special occasion. Small amounts of foundation and concealer were applied, mostly to cover up blemishes or scars that were either years old or newly garnered from farm work. As Maria worked to cover up the little imperfections, she curiously examined her reflection, noting the freckles that had begun to appear on her cheeks and arms, likely from the hours spent in the sun. Her already tan skin had deepened a tone or two, but luckily the dress was able to cover any unfavorable tan lines.

Satisfied with her appearance, she exited the bathroom and shut the door behind her. As she slipped on a pair of short-heeled slippers, Orion jumped up onto the open window pane and slipped into the house. “Try not to cause any trouble while I’m gone, you little rascal,” she murmured, scratching behind the feline’s ears as she walked past him.

The Burmese merely mewled and pressed his forehead to her palm, and she smiled sweetly before walking out of the house, checking the clock one last time before setting off down the dirt path she’d carved out, heading south with a skip in her step.

* * *

The water of the river rippled as what appeared to be a Sunfish dashed by, causing the reflection of the cloudless spring sky to distort. Elliott stared back at himself as he stood over the river, his freshly ironed blue suit reflecting brightly on the fresh water. 

“What’s with the frown?” a voice asked curiously, pulling the writer away from his thoughts.

He glances over to see Leah walking towards him, her white sundress billowing in the light breeze. He fixes his posture and drops the frown which he hadn’t even realized was playing on his lips. “Hello Leah. I’m merely lost in my thoughts, no need for concern,” he replies with a calm voice, adjusting the cuffs of his sleeves.

The sculptor hummed as she moved beside him, brushing her ginger braid over her shoulder as she looked down at the water alongside him. “Well, let me pick at your brain a bit. What’re you thinking so hard about?” she questioned curiously.

“I’m pondering my failure in the literary field. I’ve drafted the beginnings of a new novel, one I’m hoping publishers may be more keen to look at. But the weight of constant rejection is admittedly dragging me down. It’s quite hard to remain motivated when savings are slowly withering away, and nothing I write seems to hit the mark anymore,” he explained, pursing his lips.

“You’re only a failure once you give up. And you haven’t given up yet, right?” Leah tried to reassure him, offering a small smile in encouragement.

The writer smiled in return weakly, “yes… yes I suppose you’re right, as per usual. This new story I’m attempting is a far cry from my previous venture. The first book I submitted was an adventure novel, however currently I’m working on a romantic piece.”

“Romance?” Leah asked with a small grin, “was there anything that sparked your interest in that specific genre… perhaps a certain _farmer_?”

Elliott’s face flushed at the mention of Maria and he fervently shook his head. “No, of course not, I simply wanted to dip my toes into a type of writing I’ve never attempted before.” 

Ever since the Egg Festival, Leah had been making small jabs and teasing mentions of the farmer to him. She never over stepped any boundaries or went too far, but she insisted that he must’ve had some sort of crush or romantic infatuation with her. Elliott was simply happy he’d never mentioned the _tattoo incident_ to his artist friend, for he knew he’d never hear the end of it if she knew what had happened that day.

“Whatever you say,” Leah grinned, shrugging her shoulders casually before stepping away from the river, “c’mon, you could use a pick me up. Let’s go see what Gus cooked this year.”

Elliott allowed himself to be guided away from the river, his stomach’s silent protests winning over as soon as the scent of food wafted his way. The pair approached a table with various dishes and drinks on display, meats and salads and strange floral scents mixing to create an intoxicating aroma that drew the writer in.

“Elliott! S’good to see ye, ye haven’t left that cabin in so long I was starting to think the worst had happened,” Willy said with a good-natured chortle before taking a swig of what appeared to be mead. 

The writer nodded, somewhat embarrassed as he picked up a glass of ice water and lifted it to his lips, the cool liquid combating the heat of the sun. “Ah, yes, apologies my dear friend. I’m afraid I’ve been cemented within my own home as of late, I’ve buried my nose into yet another book of mine.”

The fisherman nodded his head knowingly, tipping his drink back once more before going slightly wide eyed and peering around the auburn-haired man. He wasn’t the only one that seemed to be staring at something, for whatever had just entered the field had caught Gus’ attention, as well as Pam, Shane, and Abigail who were all standing around the food table. The young, purple-haired lady tugged excitedly on the arms of Sam and Sebastian before pointing towards the field entrance with a grin.

Confused, Elliott turned on his heel, not knowing what all this commotion could possibly be about. But once his eyes landed on the figure who had drawn the town’s attention, oh he finally understood.

Maria had finally arrived at the dance, looking around shyly as she entered the marked off area for the festivities. The writer couldn’t help but stare as she stopped to speak to Pierre, who as always had a small stand set up. She grinned and seemingly laughed at something the vendor said, the sight making a smile tug on Elliott’s own lips. Then she turned, her curly hair swirling and shimmering in the sun, and when her soft, brown eyes met his own green ones she lifted a hand to wave sweetly.

He was quick to lift his own arm, waving her a hello in return. When she turned to greet Caroline, who had rushed over likely to speak and gush about the farmer’s dress, he dropped his arm and tilted his head- only to see a pair of deep blue eyes boring into him.

“What?” he asked, a tad too quick, and a tad too _defensive_.

Leah laughed, and Elliott frowned upon realizing she was laughing at him. “I’m sorry, but you should’ve seen the look on your _face_ ,” she giggled, “you looked starstruck.”

“Leah, that is absurd, I was not starstr-” he attempted to argue back, but she lifted her hand to stop him.

“Don’t even bother,” she interrupted him, still giggling a bit, “I know you can’t see it, but it’s incredibly obvious to everyone around you. If the two of you aren’t dancing together, I’ll be shocked.”

And before Elliott could get another word in edgewise, she sauntered away, presumably towards the salad bowl. 

“That farmer sure does clean up nicely, hmm?” Gus mentioned as he walked over, a plate of various fruit tarts in his hands.

Elliott nodded his head to silently agree, happy to take the pomegranate tart that was offered to him. ‘ _Yes, she certainly does,’_ he mused to himself, stealing another glance at Maria as she walked across the field to greet more townsfolk.

* * *

“You look so good!” Emily exclaimed, grasping her skirt in one hand as she dashed over to meet the farmer.

Maria blushed and clasped her hands together, “thank you, though I suppose I should thank you twice since you’re the one that made the dress, it’s gorgeous.”

“I’m glad you like it so much,” she grinned, letting go of her skirt to let it flow around her legs, “so, do you know if you’ll be dancing with anyone? Haley’s staked a claim on Alex, as per usual, and Marnie roped me into dancing with Shane.”

“Ah, I dunno, it’s my first year so I don’t think I’ll even be able to convince anyone to dance with me,” she laughed awkwardly, a small nagging thought at the back of her mind reminding her of all her thoughts of dancing with Elliott, “um, do you know who else is available to dance? If I’m lucky, maybe I’ll have a partner.”

Elliott hummed and tapped her chin, “well, there’s Doctor Harvey, but he’s most likely going to be dancing with Maru again, they tend to pair up as friends normally,” _‘I barely talk to Harvey, and I’ve only seen Maru when stopping by Robin’s for a building project or a chat,.’_ “There’s Sebastian, Sam, and Abigail, you talk to all of them yeah?” _‘Sam has been talking about asking Penny to dance for an entire week, and I already know Sebastian and Abigail are going to dance as friends like they always do.’_

Emily continued to ramble on, suggesting various people for Maria to dance with (she grimaced at the mention of Clint as a possible dancer partner, not because the blacksmith off put her in anyway, but merely because he had an incredibly obvious crush on the bartender that she was oblivious to). Her ears perked up at the mention of a certain auburn haired man, however.

“Well there’s always Elliott, you’re friends with him, yeah? Leah too. They danced together last year, but neither of them have mentioned anything about dancing together again.”

Maria’s brow furrowed and she turned to look towards the river where Elliott stood chatting casually with Leah and Willy. A gentle smile graced his features as he brushed a lock of hair behind his shoulder, drawing her attention towards the suit he wore. _‘It suits him somehow’_ she mused, not quite used to seeing him without his signature red coat, but certainly being able to appreciate the way the well tailored blue outfit sat on his figure, outlining his slim and tall form.

“... that’s an awful lot of staring you’re doing.”

The farmer jumped upon hearing Emily’s whispered statement, whipping her head around to see the blue-haired bartender looking over at her with a bemused expression.

Maria opened her mouth to attempt to argue, but when she couldn’t think of a good excuse she merely shut it, letting out an exasperated sigh and slumping her shoulders.

Emily giggled and nodded her head in the direction of the river, “go on, talk to him. Ask, I’ll be surprised if he says no.”

The farmer steeled her confidence and nodded her head, murmuring a soft goodbye and marching off towards the river, ignoring the cheeky grin her friend made as she walked off.

“Oh! While you’re over there try that red jelly at the food stand, it’s fantastic!”

* * *

“So, will the two of ye be dancing again?” Willy asked over his mug of mead.

“Depends,” Leah said with a shrug of her shoulders, “personally I’m placing my bets on Elliott dancing with Maria this year.”

The writer flushed, sipping on his glass of ice water rather than make another attempt at debating his friend over this topic.

The fisherman grinned before nudging Elliott’s arm gently, “well speak of the devil, looks like you just might get your wish boy,” he laughed heartily.

He froze momentarily, assuming the older man was implying Maria was nearby. A sudden greeting confirmed his suspicions. 

“Hello there! Oh Gus it smells wonderful, do you cater every festival the town holds?”

The saloon owner chortled and thanked the farmer as she approached the river’s edge, “I sure do, but it’s even better this year since I’ll be using a whole lot of your fresh crops. Those mashed potatoes right there? All from your farm! Same goes for the bean hotpot, the parsnip soup, and the cheese cauliflower.”

A blush dusted Maria’s cheeks and Elliott couldn’t help but grin at the sight of her getting so flustered over all his compliments. “Well I’m very happy that my little farming operation is doing all this good, remind me to snag a bowl of that soup later, will you?” she smiled gracefully.

“Humble as always, just like that grandpap of your’s,” Willy chortled, “made any progress with that fishing rod?”

“The bamboo pole is doing me wonders, I survive purely on the fish I catch between harvests, plus I feed my cat all the meal scraps,” she explained.

“Hi there, Maria. Glad to see you here,” Leah greeted her, “love the dress, by the way.”

“Ah thanks,” the farmer flushed, “I’m assuming Emily’s made yours as well? Unless you can sew, along with painting and sculpting.”

“Nah, you’d be right, Emily sewed it,” the artist laughed, “speaking of which, I’m going to go see how she’s doing before the dance starts, you two have fun.”

While she never specified who she was referring to, Elliott had the sneaking suspicion that her final comment was one more sly remark tossed his way, urging him to dance with the farmer.

He finally turned to look down at her, and when as quickly as their gazes met they were torn apart once more.

“So um, will you and Leah be dancing together?” she asked curiously.

“Most likely, as friends we’ve come to an agreement to be one another’s partners if no one else asks either of us,” he replies smoothly.

“Ah,” she mumbles, and he notices her pause, as though thinking hard on what to say next.

Deciding to ease things along, he turns to face her fully and offers a smile, “might I just say that you look absolutely dazzling?”

She giggles softly as she quirks an eyebrow, “are you saying I don’t look ‘dazzling’ every day?”

The writer stammered, leading her to laugh even more, “don’t worry, I can accept the compliment. Thank you, you look rather dashing as well.”

Though he blushed after her comment, he gazed down at her softly, satisfied knowing she was still comfortable with him. The two hadn’t spent too much time together since the Egg Festival, and he was more than happy to see she wasn’t off-put after his admittedly forward actions that day.

“Why thank you. I’ll have you know I wore my best shirt today, this sort of thing doesn’t happen very often,” he grinned, adjusting his silver tie and winking playfully.

“I would’ve never noticed, I haven’t had the chance to see the shirts you wear since _someone_ decided to coop himself up in his cabin for three weeks,” she quickly brought up.

“Yes, I did do that, didn’t I?” he murmured, furrowing his brow slightly, “apologies, I found myself being hit with a sudden wave of inspiration and simply had to put pen to paper. I’m afraid I have a poor habit of isolating myself when feeling creatively driven.”

He noticed Maria’s smile drop as she turned her gaze to the water, “I can understand throwing yourself into your work but… I guess I was just kind of concerned? For your well being, I mean. Maybe I’ll have to drop by from time to time to make sure you’re doing alright.”

This took Elliott aback. He hadn’t considered the fact that she may have wanted to see him, to know his whereabouts, or even talk to him. He supposed he was taken aback by someone other than Leah or Willy had him in mind.

“So, what’s the theme of this new novel? I think you mentioned your previous one was an action story,” she asked with genuine curiosity, her eyes flicking up towards him.

Before he could answer however, a whistle was blown from across the field.

“The Flower Dance will be beginning shortly! If I may ask all of our dancers to take their places within the field!”

As soon as they heard these words, Elliott and Maria locked eyes, blush dusting their cheeks. He watched as the farmer shut her eyes and took in a deep breath, before blurting out a sentence he could barely understand.

“Doyouwanttodancewithme?”

The writer chuckled softly, “I- I beg your pardon?”

She huffed, embarrassment obvious on her face as her freckled cheeks grew even more red, “would… would you like to dance with me, Elliott?”

He paused, partially because he couldn’t quite believe she’d actually asked. But there she was, nervously standing in front of him with her hands balled into fists as she courageously asked the question he couldn’t.

Despite the way his face was undoubtedly caked in red blush, his gaze softened and he held his hand out to her. “Of course, I would love to dance with you today, Maria,” he answered with a gentle smile.

The farmer visibly eased, her tense shoulders relaxing as she placed her hand within his, lacing their fingers together and grinning sweetly. “We’d better get going then, yeah? I don’t feel like getting yelled at by Lewis today.”

* * *

Maria could feel over a dozen pairs of eyes on her as she and Elliott neared the dancing field. She spied Leah standing near the fence sipping from a wine glass casually, as though she’d been well prepared to be watching from the sidelines. In the corner of her eye she could see Jodi and Caroline speaking in hushed whispers, no doubt gossiping about what they’d be assuming was a newly budding couple.

A sudden wave of anxiety washed over her, and she quickly realized that she had no idea what she was doing. ‘ _What have I done, I don’t know the dance, I’ve never seen this before- oh my Yoba I’m gonna make a fool of myself, I’m gonna embarrass Elliott-’_

A gentle squeeze around her hand halted her panicked thoughts, and her eyes quickly flicked up to see the writer gazing down at her. “I don’t mean to alarm you, but I can feel how quickly your heart is pounding simply from holding your hand. Are you nervous?” he asked curiously.

The farmer bit her lip as warmth flooded her face _‘is it that obvious?’_. Glancing over, she was able to see that the dancers were beginning to form two lines; Harvey in front of Maru, Shane in front of Emily, Alex in front of Haley, Sam in front of Penny, and Sebastian in front of Abigail. She and Elliott would be at the end of the line, and she could only hope that the town would be too preoccupied watching the Flower Queen Haley to see her fumble.

“A bit yeah, I just realized that I don’t even know the dance routine,” she admitted, a choked laugh spilling past her lips when she thought about how ridiculous she sounded, “look, I’m sorry, if you want to dance with Leah to save yourself from looking awful I can just-”

“No-” Elliott quickly interrupted, gripping her hand tighter, “I merely want you to enjoy yourself today. I care very little for the judgement I receive from those who live in town, I’ve been experiencing it for well over a year now. Besides, there’s no set routine, I believe for the most part all the pairs follow along with what the main couple perform. I cannot force you to stay and dance though, but I can say that I know it would be rather fun.”

“... there’s no routine?” Maria blanked.

“None whatsoever, we merely copy what the Flower Queen does,” Elliott laughed, nodding his head in Haley’s general direction.

“... oh,” she mumbled, a slightly mischievous smile playing on her lips, “well then. Let’s give them a show, shall we?”

With both Elliott’s reassurance and confidence, she felt the anxiety that’d been weighing down on her ease up. Grinning cheekily, she let go of his hand and walked forwards a few feet until she stood beside Maru. She waved politely at the nurse who waved back in turn, looking quite nice in a short sleeved white dress with a frilled skirt.

Once all twelve dancers were in place, Mayor Lewis leaned over an old stereo that was hooked into two other speakers. He pushed an old cassette tape into the deck and a bouncy tune filled the air. Maria’s eyes met Elliott’s and the two swapped identical smiles as the dance finally began.  
  


* * *

Haley was the first to move, swaying from side to side and twirling her skirt to the rhythm of the music. In front of her Alex began to bob his body in a way that mirrored her movements. The rest of the dancers would then follow suit, simply following their example until they moved to the next part of the dance.

Maria, however, had other plans. She seemed to listen to the tempo for a few moments before deciding on a way to dance. Along to the rhythm of the music she swayed her hips, causing the skirt of her dress to flare out and swirl around her. As her hips swayed she stepped side to side, light on her feet as she let the music wash over her. 

The song shifted to the next section and soon enough the two were making forward movements towards each other. Elliott couldn’t help his grin as he watched her dance, it was obvious for anyone to see how much fun she was having as she spun on her heels before taking another step towards him.

There was a moment in time where everything seemed to slow for the writer. Maria’s eyes met his and they were practically brimming with excitement and cheer, and a playful smile was ever-present on her features. Her curly locks floated in the air as she finished a spin, yet the sun above cast a light on her hair that gave her a practical halo of gold that shone around her.

His breath caught in his throat as he watched, and to him she looked downright _alluring_.

Before he knew it, the song was over, and the sound of applause and cheering replaced it’s lovely tunes. A gentle touch on his hand shook him out of his thoughts, and he looked down to see Maria gazing up at him curiously.

“Are you okay? You were um… _staring_ ,” she asked, whispering the last part as though it were some secret the two had to share.

The writer flushed, “apologies, you were simply having so much fun I couldn’t help but stare.” It was only a partial lie, he knew in the back of his mind that he’d been staring for more reasons than just that.

The farmer giggled and brushed a few stray hairs away from her face, “whatever you say. I’m gonna grab some food and catch up with some friends, but I’ll see you in a bit, yeah?”

Elliott nodded, saying a brief goodbye before watching her saunter away, unable to take his eyes off of her as she walked.

The clearing of someone’s throat managed to draw his attention away and he turned to see Leah looking over at him, a knowing smirk on her face. 

“You’ve got it _bad_ for her,” she laughed, patting her friend on the shoulder reassuringly.

Though Elliott would normally attempt to refute claims like these, he resigned himself to nodding his head in agreement. He wasn’t sure what he felt for the farmer at this point, but it was beginning to feel like more than just a want for friendship.

* * *

PS: decided to do another little drawing for this chapter, it's Maria in her Flower Dance dress :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooo we're finally starting to get somewhere. I'm having too much fun writing about dorks who don't understand their own feelings for one another


	8. A Writer's Woes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elliott opens up and vents some of his current frustrations with life. Maria's solution is simple: forget life and relax on the beach for a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of Maria and Elliott wholesome content in this one :)

“Oh these leaves are starting to round out nicely, the melons should be ready for harvest in a week I’d say. What do you think, Orion?”

Maria was crouched on the ground, doing her daily watering and checking up on all of her new crops. Summer was in full swing and you could _feel_ it. All around town the sounds of buzzing cicadas could be heard, and it seemed that everywhere the farmer went there were butterflies and ladybugs and beetles. The trees had become more green, and she’d had the smart idea to tap a maple tree on her farm for fresh syrup.

Despite all of the beauty around the valley, the heat of the season could not be ignored. If the sun had shone bright in the Spring, it was _sweltering_ now. Maria had gone to Robin for help the week before, knowing she didn’t have enough funds for a house upgrade, but still desperate for any way that she could keep her farmhouse cool. The carpenter had been kind enough to loan her an old fan free of charge, and though it didn’t seem like much it did her wonders when she’d seek shelter from the blazing sun.

The farmer had fallen into a routine of completing her chores in the early morning; watering crops, feeding the chickens, and checking/restocking crab pots she’d stowed in a pond in the southern part of her farm. If she worked diligently during those few peak hours she’d be able to escape the brunt of the heat that arrived around eleven o’clock and lasted well into the afternoon.

During those midday hours she found herself either taking refuge within her house, the library, or the saloon. While at home she’d put on random television channels and would finally get around to unpacking the last of her moving boxes, finding places for all of her old trinkets and items brought along from Zuzu City. At the library she found herself buried in various books, bringing her phone to play some peaceful instrumental music as she read about everything from seasonal crops to high fantasy escapades. On the days she spent in the saloon she’d spend most of her time in the arcade, improving her skills at _Journey of the Prairie King_ (even surpassing the previous high score, which she assumed Abigail had set before her).

Then once the sun had begun to set and the air cooled, she’d return to her farm to clean up her land, or possibly fish up in the mountains or down in Cindersap forest. It was a comfortable routine, and if she had the time she’d try and spend some of her evenings in the saloon chatting with townsfolk and indulging herself with Gus’ delicious food. She’d even managed to convince the chef to teach her some of his recipes once she had a kitchen of her own, and she intended on getting that house upgrade no later than mid-Summer.

Today though, she had different plans. She’d already fed her chickens (both of whom were growing gorgeously, Marnie said they’d be ready to begin laying eggs any day now), and had watered the last of her crops. Standing up straight, she dusted off her shorts before heading back inside to change out of her working clothes.

She quickly exchanged her faded tee and washed out shorts for something far more breathable, as today she had plans to head south to the beach. She slipped on a simple black bikini, and on top of that was a flowy, off the shoulder blouse and some denim shorts. She didn’t quite know if she’d be swimming or not today, but there was no harm in being prepared. Once she’d tied up her mass of curly hair and found some comfortable sandals, she walked over to a small ice box and grabbed her wicker basket.

“What do you think, Orion? Should I bring grapes or some spice berries,” she asked aloud, turning to look at the Burmese who was now stretched out comfortably on the open window pane, no doubt enjoying the sun that was beginning to shine in.

He merely mewled loudly, turning over to stare at her with wide, unassuming eyes.

She sighed and shook her head at him, “I’ll just bring both, and I’m sure he’ll appreciate the snack, I’m pretty sure he’s just cooped himself up in that cabin of his again.”

Moments later a few bunches of each fruit were tucked away carefully in her wicker basket, washed and wrapped in cloth. Once she’d locked up her house and wished Orion goodbye she was on her way into town, humming a cheerful tune along the way.

She was stopped a handful of times while walking through the town square; Doctor Harvey waved hello and reminded her to drink plenty of water since she’d be working in the heat, Evelyn held a polite conversation as the farmer looked at the flowers she was growing this season, Jas excitedly stopped Maria to ask about what was happening on the farm (the young girl had an increasing fondness for her ever since she was gifted a bundle of daffodils for her birthday the week prior) and she likely would’ve continued asking questions if it weren’t for Penny walking up and reminding her it was time for class, and finally Jodi had said hello while on her way to Pierre’s store.

Finally she’d arrived at the beach, her sandals digging into the warm sand as she made her way to Elliott’s cabin. She paused on the wooden steps in front of his door, brushing off her blouse before lifting her hand to knock- but a faint noise halted her movement. 

If she listened closely and blocked out the sound of the waves, light piano notes could be heard from within his house. She stopped to listen for a few seconds, she was very curious after all. She was aware her friend owned a piano but had never once heard him play.

Carefully she turned the knob of the door and slowly pushed it open to peer inside. Elliott’s back was turned to her, facing the piano as he played it gently. The melody wasn’t one she was familiar with, but it was beautiful nonetheless. 

Maria quickly cursed her luck however. She pushed the door open by another inch and it creaked loudly, it’s wooden groan cutting through the sound of the piano.

The writer paused and turned his head, a slight smile tugging on his lips once he saw the farmer stood there. “I thought someone was there,” he chuckled gently, standing up off of the piano stool to face her.

“That was wonderful,” she murmured, stepping inside the cabin and shutting the door. A light blush dusted her cheeks now, she couldn’t help but get embarrassed after being caught listening in.

The writer’s smile widened, “thank you, though I am quite rusty. I took lessons as a child but neglected practicing for many years. I picked it up again once I moved to the valley and have been honing my skills for the last year, though I don’t know if I’m nearly as good as I once was,” he explained, tracing his fingers over the keys of the piano with an obvious fondness.

His gaze dropped however, and a somber expression took him over. “What’s wrong?” Maria asked with genuine concern, setting her wicker basket down on the nearby table before walking closer to him.

He sighed before lifting his head, though the usual glimmer in his green eyes was absent, “I’d been working day and night to finish the demo of my newest book. I did successfully complete it, I sent it to a dear friend of mine online who helped me with minor revisions, and then I submitted it to the same publishers as before. Awaiting their responses has been driving me positively insane.”

She nodded her head as she listened along, happy to let him vent his situation to her.

“The occasional tune has helped, though I can’t shake this anxiety. If none of the publishers pick up this demo, I’m afraid I’ll be out of options. I’ve begun to run my bank account dry, and there’s only so many favors Lewis or Gus or even Willy can offer me to aid in saving me any amount of gold. Sometimes… sometimes I wish I could just throw it all away and become a farmer like you,” he laughed half-heartedly.

Maria knew he was joking, but to her… it didn’t sound like the _worst_ idea.

“Come live on the farm with me. Y’know I could use the extra help, especially in Summer, watering all these crops on my own is becoming rather draining,” she suggested, grinning a little.

“Seriously?” he sputtered, obviously caught off guard. Regaining his composure, however, he shook his head, “It sounds wonderful… but I can’t give up on my novel. If all else fails though, I may have to take you up on that offer.”

For some reason his denial stung somewhat, though she quickly chastised herself and reigned those thoughts in. _‘Don’t be stupid, why would he ever want to live in the farm with you? He was just joking.’_

“Apologies for all my complaining, I by no means mean to be a downer. Was there any particular reason you decided to visit today?” he asked, making her perk up and smile slightly.

Spinning on her heels, she grabbed her wicker basket before turning back to him, lifting the cloth to show the bunches of juicy berries to the writer. “You and I are having a sea-side picnic, we’re going to relax on the beach and forget our woes for a few hours. We’ll listen to those gentle ocean sounds and tell cheerful stories and have a jolly old time. That is what friends do, right?” she explained smoothly, giggling a bit at her own hypothetical question.

The grin that spread on Elliott’s face upon hearing this was infectious. “Maria, that sounds absolutely lovely.”

It didn’t take long at all for the pair to get set up. They’d pulled spare blankets out of the cabin closet and laid them out across the warm sand, and Maria took the time to check her crab pots as Elliott dipped back into his cabin momentarily to change into more beach-appropriate clothing.

As the farmer put away mussels and oysters into a bucket the writer walked out of his home, and her breath caught in her throat as she glanced up at him. 

She stared without meaning to, taking in the sight of his bare chest now that he’d abandoned his red coat and unbuttoned his shirt. It was the first time she’d seen him show this much skin, and _oh_ did she drink the sight in.

_‘I always assumed he was a bit of a string bean,’_ she mused to herself as she shut the lid of the bucket, _‘skinny and tall. But he’s not nearly as lanky as I thought… he’s got a bit of toning on him.’_ She hadn’t noticed she’d been biting her bottom lip until it began to sting and she cursed internally, realizing she might’ve inadvertently bruised herself. 

Setting down her bucket of mollusks by the shore, she sauntered over to the blankets they set down and placed a hand on her hip. “How’d you manage to maintain a body like that when you’re hidden inside that cabin everyday?” she questioned teasingly, waggling a finger at the writer.

A slight blush spread on his cheeks upon hearing this. “I’d like to claim it’s my diet, but I eat far too many carbs to say such a thing. I’m blessed with a wonderful metabolism I suppose, though I’ll have you know I still face the consequences of my terrible hermit habits. I cannot tan, and being in the sun for more than an hour without the aid of sunscreen is a one way road to the worst sunburn you’ll ever lay your eyes on,” he explained as he sat down upon the blankets, setting down a leather bound book that Maria hadn’t noticed him holding (most likely because she’d been too busy staring at other things).

“Are you… perhaps inviting me to lay my eyes on you, Mr. Whittaker?” she replied smoothly, a sly grin playing on her lips as she twisted his words.

Elliott went wide eyed at this and let out an exasperated sigh, “you know, I’m afraid if I attempt to respond to that question I may say something I’ll regret.”

This confused Maria, and though part of her wanted to question his statement, she could tell by how he’d averted his gaze that he liked wanted to change the topic.

In a swift movement, she crossed her legs and plopped down onto the edge of the blanket. “So, what’re you reading now?” she asked curiously, gesturing to the book he’d brought along with him.

The writer perked up at this, clearly pleased by her interest. He grasped the novel and lifted it up to show her it’s cover; embedded in the leather was shiny gold lettering reading ‘ _Pride and Prejudice_ ’. He then begins to ramble, providing a detailed synopsis on the books story and how it seemingly brilliantly portrays a natural romance with it’s titular characters and how the author's writing pulls one in and easily allows the reader to immerse them self in the early nineteenth century time period. 

“It is a literary classic, and for good reason. It was the first work which opened me up to the idea of romance, before reading this I had stupidly assumed that romance could not be captured in literature- that it must’ve been an emotion reserved for the silver screen. But when you read this book you can _feel_ how the characters do, it’s quite astounding really. I envy Austen’s ability to so eloquently write romance in such a way,” he concluded, setting the novel back down on the blankets gently.

During his entire explanation Maria had been staring in awe. He was so passionate when he spoke, she assumed that he’d easily be able to convince her of anything if he spoke with this same vigor.

“I’m _pretty_ sure I was supposed to read this book in my third year of high school but… I didn’t,” she mumbled, wincing when she saw the way Elliott looked at her upon this admission, “don’t burn me at the stake for this, but I might’ve cheated my way through the entire unit. Now I can see that I’ve done myself a disservice if the book is as fantastic as how you described it.”

The writer sighed and let out a soft chuckle, “it’s become a favorite of mine as of late, I’ve reread it numerous times. It was actually one of the main inspirations for my newest book, the one that’s just been sent off to publishers.”

Maria hummed, reaching into her wicker basket and plucking a few grapes from their stem. “You never did tell me the theme for your novel at the Flower Dance,” she mentioned before popping the berries into her mouth.

“It, like Pride and Prejudice, is centered around romance though there is a bit of drama added in as spice to the story. The setting is modern and it takes place on a train, the idea for such a scenario had stuck in my mind ever since I moved to the valley. When I learned of the old railroad up north the idea of writing one of my tales and having it be set in a train fascinated me. It just so happened that the location worked perfectly for my new novel,” he explained.

“It sounds interesting, I’ll be sure to be the first in line to buy a copy once it’s been published,” she said with a grin.

Elliott quickly shook his head, “no, I will not be having you purchase a copy, I’ll gladly let you read it for free.”

She rolled her eyes at this, “fine, just because you said that I’ll be buying _five copies_. And if you try and argue with me again I’m making that ten, mister.”

Despite his slight frustration the two shared a laugh over this. 

“Y’know, it’s kinda funny…” Maria murmured once their laughter settled down, “romance is actually one of my favorite genres, when it comes to writing, film, even theatre. But I don’t like cheesy romance, though I can indulge in it. I’m a sucker for _real_ romance, you get to watch it build and you see how characters can go from simply being enamored with one another to being fully invested, helping each other grow and become better people. The two will look at one another and you can just see it in their eyes, it’s a feeling that I-”

She’d been rambling, quickly catching herself before she would’ve ended up admitting something far too personal. Quickly she cleared her throat and blushed, brushing some stray hairs away from her face, “sorry, I let myself get caught up.”

“No need to apologize,” Elliott reassured her, offering a gentle smile, “And I actually remembered that romance was a favorite of yours. You mentioned it many weeks ago, I’d gotten curious and asked while we were both shopping at Pierre’s.”

This jogged Maria’s memory. She thought back to that day, it was early spring and she’d been standing in between some of the shelves in Pierre’s store, attempting to do mental math and budget out how much she could afford to pay for seeds and how much she’d have to save for actual food. Elliott had entered the store while she was lost in her thoughts and the two held a brief, pleasant conversation; they discussed the weather, the crops Maria was planning on growing, and finally he’d asked about her favorite type of novel. 

Shyly she’d answered romance, assuming he’d just take her for some hopeless romantic who watched cheesy rom-coms, but he surprised her by being genuinely invested in her answer.

The rest of the afternoon had gone fairly smoothly. They chatted and ate berries and told childhood stories which brought about plenty of laughs. 

At some point Sam had shown up with both Vincent and Jas in tow, no doubt babysitting on his mother’s behalf, and Maria (after a lot of begging from two excitable children) excused herself to go build sand castles with them closer to the shore.

When she looked back she’d be able to catch Elliott stealing glances at her over the top of his book, before quickly burying his face in the pages to pretend like nothing had happened. She made a mental note to tease him about this later.

One spectacular sand castle later, the two children waved disappointed goodbyes as Sam called out to them, and she watched the two kids dash away, smiling as their giggles filled the air. Once they’d left the beach she slipped her phone out of her back pocket, eyes skimming over the digital ‘5:45’ that momentarily flashed.

“Well!” she announced, loud enough for the writer to hear as he slowly closed his novel, “this has been quite the lovely summer afternoon. Though I _do_ have to get back to the farm at some point, I’ve got evening chores and budgeting to do. _Adult stuff_ ,” she sighed, muttering the last two words with distaste.

Elliott chuckled, “I’m sad to hear it, though I could never keep you away from your work. It is your livelihood after all. However, I do insist that you take this with you.”

As he spoke he lifted his copy of _Pride and Prejudice_ and held it out to her. Maria quickly shook her head, “oh I couldn’t, I don’t know when I’d even find the time to read it.”

“I’m letting you borrow it, and I’ve read it so many times I could quote the majority of it purely from memory. Take as long as you need to read it, I wouldn’t mind if it took you years,” he argued.

She huffed before shrugging her shoulders. “Alright, fine,” she murmured, giving in as she gently grasped the book and took it into her arms, “but just to spite you I’m going to take as long as I possibly can to read this now.

Elliott laughed, already accustomed to the bratty sense of humor she’d have at times. The two shared goodbyes and minutes later Maria was sauntering away towards the bridge, wicker basket in one hand and leather book held tightly to her chest with the other.

Oddly she felt quite nice having something of Elliott’s. It felt even more nice knowing that she was trusted with an object he was so fond of as well.

* * *

Days later Maria found herself checking on her crops again in the late evening. The sun was nearly done setting and the sky was a gradient of peachy pink and deep violet. Her chickens had already gone to rest inside their coop for the day, and Orion was likely inside and asleep her pillow like he usually was this time of day.

“I’ve really got to talk to Robin about contacting someone to install a sprinkler system, this is getting ridiculous,” she muttered, seeing how dry the soil around her melons had already become due to the sweltering heat of the day. She’d started having to water some crops twice a day to keep up with how hot it could get.

Just as soon as she lifted her watering can however, the sound of a voice calling out quickly stopped her.

“Maria! Maria, I’ve got wonderful news!”

‘ _Elliott?’_ she wondered internally, and when she turned to look towards the east entrance of her farmland sure enough the all too familiar writer was standing there, dressed in his regular red coat with a beaming grin on his face.

Confused, she set down her can and dashed over, slipping off her work gloves as she approached. “What’s up with you, you look like you’ve won the Zuzu City lottery,” she giggled, wiping her forehead with the back of her palm.

“A publisher is interested in my novel-” he practically blurted out, unable to contain the excitement in his voice.

“WHAT!” she screamed, dropping her gloves and staring at him wide eyed, “Elliott that’s amazing!!”

She couldn’t stop herself from pulling him into a celebratory hug, only to squeak in surprise when she was lifted up off of the ground and swung around by him (she was actually quite shocked that he’d been able to pick her up, not that she was complaining).

The pair laughed as they spun in a circle, though Elliott was very careful as he gently set her down, and yet again Maria found herself missing his touch as he pulled his hands off of her waist.

“They want to see me in Zuzu City next week for a meeting. I’ve made preparations to leave Friday and I’ll be visiting their publishing headquarters Saturday morning. I’ll likely be back in the evening that same day unless something keeps me occupied,” he quickly explained, his happy smile never once leaving his face as he spoke.

Maria’s own smile faltered a bit upon hearing this, and the writer noticed. “What’s wrong?” he asked with a furrowed brow.

“Nothing,” she quickly answered, “nothing, it’s just… well my birthday’s on Saturday- but don’t feel bad! This is an opportunity you can’t pass up, and I’ll have plenty more birthdays after this one.”

“I’ll try and return as soon as possible then. I’d hate to not be here and help you celebrate your first birthday living in the valley,” he affirmed, smiling down at her before turning her gaze towards the farmland. “It looks so lovely here, especially in the evening. You’ve done a wonderful job cleaning the land, I must say,” he complimented her, leaving a blush dusting her cheeks.

“Awh thanks, it’s a lot of hard work. Very rewarding though, I get lots of foraged goods when clearing out the land. In fact, I made smoothies and juice earlier today with some of my berries, wanna come inside and taste them?” she offered, nodding her head in the direction of the farmhouse.

“Oh, I could never turn down an offer like that,” Elliott replied smoothly.

She grinned and offered her hand to him, and he reciprocated by lacing his fingers with her own. Soon after the two were walking hand in hand towards her home, the exciting prospects of the future buzzing in both of their minds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so so so sorry for how long this took! I'd gotten about half the chapter done quite some time ago before getting some awful writer's block, plus life had been stressing me out.
> 
> I wrote and re-wrote this chapter like five separate times before I was satisfied with where it'd gone.
> 
> Anyways! Unless something happens, again, the next chapter should *hopefully* come out within the next two weeks, unless life decides it wants to screw me over yet again. But hey, who isn't life screwing over right now?


	9. Sweet Summer Child

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maria's birthday is a roller coaster of emotions, but luckily she has someone there to talk her through it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Putting out this chapter ahead of time because *wow* I was on a writing craze while typing it- guess it makes up for my three-week-long writer's block :p
> 
> (It's also a lot longer than I planned, so yay, happy accident)

“You laid an egg!”

Maria had been in the middle of the routine she’d developed for summer mornings; wake up at six, fill Orion’s water bowl, make a quick breakfast, water the crops, and once the chickens have been given time to wake up she’d go in the coop to check on them and fill their troughs with food and water.

Today however there was a surprise awaiting her. Two eggs had been left upon the bundles of hay and grass she’d put inside the nest box, a simple one Marnie had taught her how to build (“Oh it’s simple really! Just get some slabs of wood and hammer them together to make a box, leave one of the sides open and fill it with some hay, the chickens will wanna lay in it like it’s a bed since it’ll certainly be cozier since that wood floor. If you’re lucky you’ll start getting those morning eggs in no time!”).

And sure enough, there they were. They were small of course, it was to be expected for the girls’ first lays, but Maria was proud nonetheless. “Ladies, these look wonderful. Impeccable timing too since it’s my birthday, I’m going to pretend you two knew and this is your guys’ gift to me,” she explained, placing her hands on her hips and looking down at the two birds.

Cygnus merely chirped in response and dashed off towards the food trough, no doubt ready to stuff her beak with feed. Corvus on the other hand stepped closer to Maria and pressed her little head against the farmer’s leg, cheeping sweetly before leaving to walk outside of the chicken door that Maria had opened minutes before.

After cleaning up after the two chickens and carefully collecting the two brown eggs and placing them in her basket she headed back to her own farmhouse, continuing to check off items on her mental to-do list. She’d budgeted out that due to her recent harvest of melons she’d soon have enough for that house upgrade she so desperately needed. All she had to do was sell one more harvest of hot peppers, which her current batch would be ripe in just two days' time, and she’d be set. She could survive off of fish she caught for another while until she had the spare reserves to buy meals from Gus at the saloon again.

She was more than excited for the upgrade as well. She needed more space, a kitchen, a fixed bathroom, and **air conditioning.** Yoba, did she need air conditioning. The summer air was not letting up and the weatherman had forecasted that a heat wave would be coming within the next week meaning _somehow_ it was going to get even hotter.

After checking on the crab pots she’d put in the pond in the southern part of her farm and preening the stalks of her blueberry bushes she retired into the farmhouse. It was nearly noon and the last thing she wanted was to be a sweaty, exhausted mess before the birthday party Leah was throwing her.

Leah had been planning a get together in the saloon this evening, all in Maria’s honor. Though she hadn’t been told many of the details, she could only assume a majority of the town would be there, especially since it was her first birthday in the valley. All she’d been informed of was to show up at five o’clock sharp, no sooner, no later.

The farmer was excited, after all the last time she’d had a party of her own was when she was in her early teens. Yet, she couldn’t help feeling a tad disappointed whenever her thoughts wandered off to what awaited her in the evening. She knew why she was feeling this way, she just didn’t want to admit it.

Elliott wouldn’t be there to help celebrate, and she felt so incredibly selfish for being upset that he was away. She’d been mentally bickering with herself ever since he’d left the day before, half of her brain argued that it was okay if she was sad he was gone, while the other persisted that her being upset over his absence was selfish and a disregard of the fact that he was gone for a good reason.

She knew neither argument was totally correct, but she still couldn’t help that nagging feeling of guilt that settled in the back of her mind.

They’d said goodbye the day before, Maria was actually quite surprised to see her writer friend stood at the entrance of her farm with a small suitcase in hand. 

She remembered their conversation clearly: they’d exchanged hellos and he let her know he wouldn’t have very much time to talk as the next bus to Zuzu City was mere minutes away, she’d complimented him on his hair (teasingly, as it was soaking wet from what she could only assume was a last minute shower), he complimented her on her outfit (which had notably been caked in dirt at the time), she’d given him her phone number and asked that he text her once he got to his hotel room, he assured her he’d stay in contact, then the pair said goodbye. They hugged for quite a long time yet the farmer found herself yearning for more as she watched him retreat down the beaten dirt path and towards the bus stop.

Hours after their encounter and true to his word, Maria received a text from Elliott as she’d been getting ready for bed. _‘Safe and sound and positively cozy in my hotel room. Shaking off my nerves by indulging in a small amount of wine and watching that cooking program you showed me weeks ago. The premade food still peeves me but the show’s host has an infectious personality so it’s still rather entertaining. Regardless, I hope you have a lovely evening and night and dream some lovely birthday dreams -Elliott’._

There were many things about this text that charmed Maria. The fact that he brought up ‘Queen of Sauce’ and noted it was something she’d introduced him to, the mention of ‘birthday dreams’, and the way he signed his name at the end of the message despite already having his name saved in her contact list.

She’d quickly sent him a reply, unable to wipe off the little grin that played on her lips the entire time she typed. _‘Very glad to hear that you’re safe, though make sure you don’t indulge in too much of that wine, I’m not sure it’d be a great first impression to the publishers if you showed up to the meeting hungover. Enjoy Queen of Sauce but be sure to get plenty of sleep, you’ll need to be rested up before the big day. Sweet dreams future author :p’._

After sending her message she’d drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face. A part of her was oddly sad when she woke up to no messages, but she reasoned it out with the fact that she woke up at six and was likely up before anyone she knew.

The creak of wood beneath her feet shook her out of her memories and she pushed those thoughts back as she untied her boots. She left the shoes outside her door, they’d been muddied from her quick trip to the pond.

“Orion?” she asked aloud as she pushed the door open, peering around her home. When she’d left this morning he’d been curled up at the end of her bed, but now the Burmese was nowhere to be seen. A shrill meow caught her attention and she turned around to see the cat sat at the bottom of her wooden porch.

“Wha- how did you get there?” she stammered, moving her leg aside so he could trot inside the house ahead of her. “... Little weirdo,” she muttered, flicking on the switch for the rickety old fan that Robin had given her.

It slowly whirred to life, it’s plastic blades creating a dull buzzing sound as they spun in fast circles to create a current. The farmer pulled up a stool close to the fan and plopped down atop it, sitting quietly and happily letting the rush of cool air wash over her.

Just as she got accustomed to the man-made breeze though, a sudden ringing from her phone filled the room. It was persistent, meaning someone was trying to call her. With a groan she got up from her seat, having to ignore the way her body ached and begged to rest.

Making her way over to the coffee table, she was able to see that her phone’s lit up screen read _Camilla_ , meaning her older sister was calling. After a quick mental debate she sighed and picked up her phone, pressing her thumb against the green answer button and holding it against her ear.

_“_ _Hola, niña! Feliz cumpleaños~”_ was what immediately came through as soon as she answered. She recognized her sister’s voice, a bit loud though still smooth. Authoritative even when speaking cheerful Spanish, which came with the territory of being the eldest sibling.

“Hey, sis,” Maria answered back, cringing at how awkward she sounded. She hated having phone calls, you could never see the other person’s face meaning she never knew how the other person _actually_ felt, and she was terrible at judging tone through voice, “thanks by the way, I appreciate it.”

_“You know I could not go without telling my favorite baby sister happy birthday,”_ Camilla teased, making the farmer roll her eyes.

“Do you go around telling the twins that I’m your favorite sister?”

_“The twins are not sisters, they are… an entity,”_ she answered jokingly, pulling a small laugh out of Maria.

“Fair,” she hummed, sitting back on her love seat as she kept the phone pressed to her ear, “anyways, did you only call to wish me a happy birthday? Not that I don’t wanna talk, but this was kind of out of the blue.”

_“Just wanted to check in on you, say happy birthday, and I want to know how grandpa’s farm is doing. Made any progress?”_

A small smile quirked at Maria’s lips upon hearing this. Aside from the occasional phone call from her mother, no one else had shown interest in her new life. Straightening up, she jumped into an excited explanation, “really good, actually! Summer’s been really good to me so far; my crops are profitable, I’ve got some chickens that have started laying eggs for me, and I’m planning on getting some major renovations done on the farmhouse soon-”

_“... eso es sorprendente…”_

Her sister’s muttered words shook the farmer momentarily. Her smile dropped and her brow furrowed, “s-surprising? Qué… what do you mean..?”

Camilla laughed on the other end of the call, and the very sound irked Maria. _“Oh you sweet summer child.”_ Another laugh. _“I am proud of course, it’s just surprising is all… no one really expected you to make the farm work out, you know?”_

She bit the inside of her cheek, grip on her phone tightening. “No. I don’t know,” she mumbled, words sounding more bitter than she’d intended.

_“I’m pretty sure Bernardo and Carlos were making bets with my husband about when you’d come back home,”_ Camilla continued, _“we were all very surprised when you just wanted to leave after all. Your job seemed fine, and I know you’d just broken up with Taylor but everything was going smoothly for you. She’s been asking about you, by the way, did you ever even tell her you left the city? I think she wants to try and get together again, she was very sweet I’m sure the two of you could make it work out-”_

“I have to go, Camilla,” Maria quickly interjected, sick to her stomach of this conversation already.

_“Mar-”_

Her sister was barely able to get another word in before she spat a short ‘bye’ and hung up, dropping her phone on the coach and groaning loudly. She felt hot, hotter than before, with rage stirring in her mind as her sister’s words played back in her mind over and over again.

“... they never change, do they?” she sighed, wiping away fat tears that’d gathered in her eyes before pulling herself up off of the love seat.

Running a hand through her hair, she puffed out an annoyed sigh and eyed Orion who’d claimed her coffee table and stretched his slick body across it. Kneeling, she got down onto the floor so she was eye level with the feline, who blinked his big, blue eye curiously.

“You believe in me, right? You think I can be a good farmer?” she asked sincerely.

In response the Burmese meowed and reached a paw out, tapping her nose repeatedly. “... I’ll take that as a yes,” she mumbled, laughing quietly, “now then, mister, help me figure out how to pass time until it’s five o’clock.”

* * *

A frown tugged on Elliott’s lips as he ran a brush through his hair. “You promised Maria you’d return in time to celebrate her birthday, yet here you are getting ready for dinner with your parents instead,” he muttered, glaring at himself in the mirror as he got dressed.

His day had gone quite well. The meeting with the publishers went swimmingly and he’d signed a deal that would have him revising his book and making one final edit which would be published. The novel would go into production and he’d be able to start doing public readings and signings within Spring of the following year. If sales were good they’d even sign him for a tour of the book, which was spectacular as he’d be a first time author.

He was ecstatic and had been more than ready to jump on the next bus to Pelican Town and tell Maria the good news- until he’d received a phone call from his mother. It was entirely casual, simply her calling to check in on her only child. When he confessed to being in the city she was aghast, feigning hurt over him not letting her know in advance he’d be in the area.

Next thing he knew he’d been roped into attending an early dinner with his parents, and it wasn’t as though he could just turn them down, it’d been over a year since he’d seen either in person. So he’d booked another night at his hotel, more than grateful that they’d been happy to accommodate his last minute request.

“I’m sure she’ll understand, she’s always been quite gracious,” he reasoned, mostly thinking aloud as he set down the brush and adjusted his green tie, “I’ll have to buy her a gift to make it up to her. Perhaps some window shopping is in order, she deserves something nice.”

Flicking his eyes over to the digital clock beside the bed, his eyes widened when he saw it was nearly four o’clock, meaning his parents were no doubt already waiting for him in the hotel lobby. _‘Let’s attempt to not let down more than one person today, yes?’_ he thought to himself, grabbing his belongings and room key before heading out the door.

_‘Hopefully she’s still having a lovely birthday… she really does deserve it…’_

* * *

When Leah had told Maria she’d planned a ‘get together’ she was grossly understating the event.

Practically everyone in town was packed into the saloon, and if they weren’t there to help celebrate then they were just one of Gus’ regulars.

She’d cleaned up a bit, after all it would probably be smart to look her best since all the attention would be on her this evening. Her hair was freshly washed, hanging in loose ringlets over her shoulders and she’d thrown on a loose-fitting blue sundress that subtly flared out at her waist.

As soon as she stepped into the saloon she was greeted by a fanfare of ‘surprise!’ as the townsfolk all hopped up to greet her.

“Hey there, birthday girl,” Leah beamed, stepping up to Maria as she shut the door behind her, “I’m going to let you know now, the bill’s already been covered so order as much food and buy as many drinks as you want, it’s your day today.”

The farmer blushed as she looked around the packed building; on the circle table closest to the door was a layered cake, coated in light green buttercream frosting with little icing details that were drawn to resemble a cute, minuscule model of a farm. She was easily able to assume that Evelyn had baked the cake, perhaps with some artistic input from Leah. 

Evelyn herself sat at the next table over, sharing a plate of fried mushrooms with her husband George who looked less than thrilled to have been dragged out of the house. Their grandson Alex was leaning against the bar, his arm wrapped around Haley’s waist as the two spoke to her sister Emily who as always was bar tending. Gus passed by, shouting a quick greeting to Maria as he set down two plates of spaghetti for Robin and Demetrius who were sitting close to the jukebox. 

Pam and Shane were in their usual spots, drinking their respective drinks and generally ignoring the festivities taking place around them. Penny was notably absent, but so were Jas and Vincent so it could only be assumed that the teacher was watching over the two children. Caroline and Pierre were both seated at the bar, both waving politely to the farmer (who’d become one of their most frequent customers).

Clint and Willy shared a booth, having a quiet discussion over their mugs of beer. Marnie and Lewis were, as per usual, seated close together in the corner of the saloon. Maria spied Jodi, who was standing besides Sam and attempting to smooth back his hair despite his protests. Sebastian and Abigail were nearby, quietly laughing at their friend as they set up musical equipment in the side room. Maru was even there, which shocked the farmer since she was sure she’d never seen her inside the saloon before, though she was chatting casually with Doctor Harvey. 

“Leah, this is a lot of people,” the farmer whispered nervously, just loud enough for her friend to hear.

The sculptor nodded and gently placed her hand on Maria’s shoulder, rubbing small circles to sooth her, “I know, but they’re all here for you. It’s sort of a big deal since it’s your first birthday here and all. We can take it slow, I’ll make sure nobody swarms you, and while we socialize it’ll give the band enough time to set up. Sounds good?”

So Sam, Sebastian, and Abigail _were_ going to be performing, how nice. The three had told her about their band before, though they hadn’t had too many in-person gigs they had garnered a small online following by posting covers.

“Uh, yea that sounds good. Where should we start?” Maria agreed after a moment of thought, well aware of the multiple pairs of eyes focused on her. 

The next three hours were a blur of conversing, eating, drinking, and many, many birthday toasts being made in her name. By the time she’d looped back around she’d also accumulated a collection of gifts: A hand-sewn patch of a fairy rose from Emily which Maria promised to pin on one of her jackets; a small booklet of photographs taken by Haley that showed her farm’s progress and had pictures of the farmer at both the Egg Festival and Flower Dance; a packet of coupons for Pierre’s shop (Caroline had looked quite embarrassed when her husband handed them over); a cleaning kit to keep all of her tools in pristine condition from Clint; a bottle of Robin and Demetrius’ favorite strawberry wine; a bag full of freshly baked cookies and biscuits from Evelyn; a sealed envelope containing Gus’ recipes for hashbrowns, pancakes, tortillas, and triples shot espressos; a box of shimmering fishing tackles and spinners from Willy; a key chain with a round, cartoonishly adorable chicken hanging on the end of it from Shane (he’d begrudgingly called the farmer over as she’d been walking around, mentioned how much Jas spoke about her and how she’d wanted him to give the farmer a gift since she wouldn’t be at the party); and finally from Leah was a small owl statue carved from wood which resembled the tattoo behind Maria’s ear to a T.

Maria was feeling overwhelmed- in a good way. She didn’t want to seem ungrateful, because she wasn’t by any means, but the sudden support and kindness that everyone had suddenly shown her was jarring.

She found Leah in the crowd and tapped her on the shoulder, “hey, I’ll be right back, just need a quick breather. When’s the band gonna start playing?”

“In fifteen minutes is when the set starts, but they’ll be warming up soon,” Leah quickly answered, “are you okay though? Need anyone to go outside with you?”

The farmer quickly shook her head, “no, I’ll be fine. It’s just stuffy in here, I’ll try and be quick.”

The sculptor nodded and Maria practically dashed out of the saloon, opening and closing the front door as fast as possible. She leaned against the wood of the building, the nighttime providing a cool breeze that washed over her and calmed her racing thoughts.

Her heart was pounding in her chest and she swayed momentarily. _‘Yoba, what on Earth is wrong with me? I need to sit down’_ she muttered inwardly, stepping onto the cobblestone paths and making her way to a trio of benches not too far away.

As soon as she sat down she pulled her phone out, squinting her eyes as it’s bright screen flashed up at her. Without thinking her finger pressed the call button and she hovered over a certain name momentarily: Elliott’s.

_‘Should I… what if he’s busy? I wouldn’t want to intrude…’_ she mulled over in her mind, hesitating to press the button, ‘ _he wouldn’t be mad if I called though… he’d understand if I needed to talk.’_

Before she could continue to doubt herself she tapped the screen and lifted the phone to her ear. One ring. Then a second. A third. She momentarily thought about just hanging up, but then the ringing stopped.

_“Hello?”_

A shaky, relieved sigh escaped Maria before she could stop it, simply hearing his voice did so much to calm her nerves. “H-hi,” she stammered, “you’re not busy, are you?”

_“I’ve just returned to my hotel,”_ he answered, _“I apologize for not having returned today like I’d promised. My parents reached out at the last minute and invited me to dinner, it’s been so long since I’ve seen them I couldn’t turn them down.”_

“No worries, I understand,” she mumbled, unable to help the way her voice wavered.

Elliott paused on the other end of the call for just a moment before speaking up once more, _“Maria, are you alright?”_

“Y-yea I’m good,” she quickly replied, cursing the way her unsure tone of voice betrayed her, “I’m all good… um… how’d the meeting go?”

_“I’ll tell you about my meeting once you confess how you’re actually feeling,”_ he asserted, _“the way you’re speaking does not sound like the voice of a person who is ‘good’.”_

She bit the inside of her cheek, annoyed that he was so easily able to read her despite not even being there, “it’s… nothing, I’m just being stupid.”

_“Maria,”_ Elliott began, and the serious way in which he spoke her name gave her goosebumps, _“I can assure you that whatever you may be feeling right now is entirely and wholly valid. Do you remember what we discussed in your home after the Egg Festival?”_

The farmer blushed as she thought back to that day, and specifically the tattoo incident, before laughing nervously, “I remember certain things about that day in vivid detail, but yes I know what conversation you’re talking about.”

_“What I promised then holds true even now. You can tell me anything, you’re free to confide in me and I will do everything in my power to aid you in feeling better. I cannot force you, but I do want to help regardless,”_ he explained gently.

Maria sniffled. She’d gone teary eyed without realizing and quickly wiped her eyes as she cleared her throat, “I’m feeling… very emotional. It’s been a weird day, but the party Leah planned has been nice. I don’t know what happened but when I was given birthday gifts I got really overwhelmed and I don’t know why. I mean I know I’m not exactly accustomed to positive reinforcement, and everyone in town has just been _so_ kind to me? It was a lot to take in...”

Elliott hummed thoughtfully as she spoke, _“may I ask, when was the last time you had a proper birthday celebration with your own family and friends?”_

The farmer scoffed, rolling her eyes momentarily, “aside from the standard ‘happy birthday’ text or phone call my family hasn’t done anything with me in years. It’s not like I actively wanna beg for gifts, if I need something I can buy it myself, but it would’ve been nice to go out to dinner with them? Be invited back home to spend the evening with them, y’know? But… that never happened.”

_“I hate to say this but I’m afraid that the more you tell me about your family, the less I like,”_ she hears Elliott mumble, _“I’m aware that may be an unfair assumption as I’ve yet to meet any of your family, so perhaps I shall reserve my judgement.”_

Maria giggled quietly, “are you suggesting that you’d like to meet my family, Elliott?”

She heard him stutter and let out a deep sigh, _“I’m going to momentarily ignore that statement to a say point I’d meant to make earlier. However, as I said before, your emotions are entirely valid. What you’re feeling is not wrong, by any means. You’ve lacked kindness in your life that you so desperately deserved, it’s only natural to be overwhelmed when exposed to so much goodwill._

_“My only suggestion is to simply enjoy yourself. Return to your party and dance the night away, lose yourself in the music, and forget any worries. Allow yourself to experience the tenderness in life that you’ve earned. Because you have earned this Maria, and don’t you_ **_dare_ ** _convince yourself that you haven’t. You’re one of the kindest, sweetest, most hard working people I’ve ever had the honor of knowing and damn if you don’t deserve to have a brilliant birthday, and I’m cursing myself for not being at your side to help you celebrate.”_

Maria bit down on her lip, stopping sobs that threatened to rack her throat as her vision grew blurry, tears dripping down her cheeks. Her grip on her phone tightened as she attempted to regain her composure, and she blinked her eyes quickly in an attempt to clear the tears. “T-thank you,” she mumbled, “and before you ask yes I’m crying, but it’s good tears. Again. You’ve got to stop making me cry, it’s not fair.”

Elliott let out a good-hearted chuckle on the other end of the line, _“Apologies, though you should probably be returning to your party now, I’m sure they’re asking about you in there.”_

“Hey I thought you were gonna tell me about your meeting,” the farmer pouted, wiping her cheeks with the back of her palm.

_“I believe I’d prefer to tell you in person, there’s specific details that I’d like to see your physical reaction to,”_ he answered, and she could _hear_ the cheeky smile that must’ve been playing on his lips, _“I plan on riding the earliest bus to Pelican Town in the morning, and that’s a promise I intend on keeping this time. Nothing else could possibly keep me in Zuzu City at this point, besides, I have a certain gift I need to deliver.”_

“Elliott Whittaker, you will _not_ buy me anything in the city,” Maria countered.

_“I’m afraid it’s too late to be telling me this, as it’s already been bought,”_ he replied smoothly.

She groaned, “Fine, I’ll just be sure to get you something even better for your birthday come this Fall.”

The writer chuckled, _“I’ll be looking forward to it. I’ll let you go now, you’ve got a party to enjoy.”_

“Alright,” she sighed somewhat sadly, “I’ll be seeing you tomorrow then. Have a good night, yeah?”

_“You as well, enjoy the birthday festivities and get plenty of rest once you’re home. Good night,” he murmured._

Maria hesitated before hanging up on the call. She stared at the phone for a few moments, thinking, before the door to the saloon was swung open.

“You alright out here?” a voice called out, and she was quickly able to tell that it was Leah.

The farmer nodded her head as she turned to look back, “yeah, a lot better now actually.”

“Then come back inside, the band’s about to start and Abigail’s begging to be able to dedicate the first song to you.”

A grin made its way onto Maria’s face and she jumped up off of the bench. 

Elliott was right, and she’d be damned if she didn’t get to enjoy herself for once in her life. And once she was back inside the saloon, dancing happily to the upbeat music the trio played, it was still the brilliant writer who stuck in the back of her mind and his words that never faded away.

* * *

As a bonus, here's a drawing of Maria's reaction to all the presents (just a _tad_ exaggerated):

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I get emotional while typing Elliott's little speech of encouragement for Maria? Yes, yes I did
> 
> Lot's of wholesome Maria/Elliott content in this one, was very fun to type. 
> 
> The next chapter is going to be *very* fun though, and you will all learn why as soon as I type it up lol
> 
> Also, as always, kudos and comments are always appreciated :)
> 
> (Oh btw, my art instagram is @azularts if anyone's interested in seeing more of my work, I don't post super consistently, but I tryyyy)


	10. Escapades on a Summer's Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a hot day in the valley and Maria needs to find an escape- luckily, her friends have a plan in the works.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow this chapter got far longer than I intended it to be- not that that's a bad thing though, I hope you all enjoy over 7000 words :p

The heat had become damn near unbearable at this point in the summer.

The heat wave had arrived, as predicted the week before, and the entirety of Pelican Town was seeking out ways to keep cool. Gus, Pierre, and Joja Mart alike were selling bags of ice by the pound and rarely anybody was leaving their homes and the safety of air conditioning.

Maria however still did not have the luxury of air conditioning, but luckily for her it was only a day away. Her hot pepper harvest had grown earlier in the week and she immediately sold every fruit and ran to Robin’s with her savings. She’d practically busted down the carpenters front door before begging for her house upgrade- kitchen, air conditioning, fixed pipes, and heater all included.

Robin was more than happy to agree, letting the farmer now she’d get started as soon as possible. And that’s where she was, hammering away at the farmhouse in spite of the heat. The farmer had been sure to leave plenty of water for the carpenter to drink while she worked but for the most part was staying out of her hair.

Which meant that currently Maria had found shelter in the town’s museum. She’d completed her chores in the early morning and made her way into town before the sun had a chance to fully rise and was now nestled into some of the beanbags with a sketchbook on her lap.

The book was old and the pages were slightly crumpled and faded, but it was one of the only pieces of art supplies she’d brought with her from Zuzu City, along with some pencils and pens of course. Overnight she’d gotten the sudden inspiration to try something, _anything_ art related, so within the library she’d grabbed a handful of books about botany and zoology and was using the diagrams and photos within the books as references as she sketched.

Not too long into her little art session the door to the museum was pushed open and she could hear someone quietly greet Gunther. Maria couldn’t stop the smile that spread on her lips as soon as she recognized whose voice it was.

A certain writer turned the corner of the bookshelves and as soon as his eyes met her own the two grinned at one another.

“Hey there, stranger,” Maria smirked, “escaping the heat?”

He nodded, rolling his eyes in an exaggerated manner that pulled a giggle out of the farmer, “yes, I’m afraid that even with the breeze from the sea the beach is far too warm, and my little cabin is lacking proper ventilation.”

“Ah, well once Robin’s done with my place I’ll have an AC unit, and you’re more than welcome to come around whenever you need some cool air,” Maria replied.

She could see a small smile tug on the writer’s lips as he began to skim the shelves, “I’ll be happy to take you up on that offer, though I admit I’ll likely feel a tad guilty if I’m taking advantage of your living space while you’re out in the fields working tirelessly with this dreadful heat beating down on you.”

Maria shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t mind one bit, you’re my friend, it’s not as though you sitting inside my home is gonna burden me. Plus, if you do start to feel guilt about using my air conditioning, I can always give you some chores to do around the farm. Would you be up for chopping down some old oak trees?” she suggested with a sly grin.

Elliott’s eyes widened slightly at the notion before he chuckled, and Maria watched curiously as his fingers wrapped around the spine of a book from the fiction section, “I’m afraid I may not have the strength nor the stamina that you possess that allows you to cut down trees. Maybe a simpler task such as watering would be better suited for me.”

“So I’ll take that as you offering to water all my crops,” she retorted quickly, “great! I’ll see you at six o’clock in the morning tomorrow to get started.”

The look of shock on the writer’s face nearly made her snort and she had to clap a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter. He chuckled in return, and like always the two fell into the comfortable feeling they offered one another.

Once Elliott was satisfied with his novel selection he found a comfortable seat and began to read, and Maria couldn’t help but peer over the edge of her sketchpad to watch as he smoothly thumbed the pages to flip them over, taking in the way his lips pursed as he concentrated on the story and how his green eyes flicked back and forth as he read, lighting up at certain points when he seemingly read something interesting.

_‘The perfect model,’_ Maria thought to herself with a grin, pressing a pencil to her paper as she began to sketch his pose.

It’d started as something simple, she’d merely drawn a figure that mirrored his and studied how he looked sitting down. But the more detail she added to the limbs and shapes, the more and more the drawing began to fully resemble Elliott himself. She felt somewhat odd drawing him without his knowledge, but she assumed that since no one would be looking through this sketchbook it wouldn’t cause too much of an issue.

She then paid careful attention to the details of her sketch, biting down on her lip as she outlined his auburn hair and the way it flowed over his shoulders, the wrinkles and lines of his coat, the way his hands gripped the book as he flipped through it. It was at this moment, as she was meticulously drawing the curve of his jaw, that she realized just how defined it was. 

_‘He’s got a really attractive face,’_ she wondered, _‘that’s not weird right? It’s okay to think my friends are attractive, right?’_

For some reason using the word ‘friend’ to refer to Elliott had become quite sour in her mind, but she pushed those thoughts aside as she continued to sketch.

Her gaze bounced back and forth between glancing up at him to focusing on her paper. Each time her eyes would flick up to gaze at him he’d be too wrapped up in his reading to notice. Eventually however, her winning streak had run dry.

She looked up from her paper, just for a second, and locked eyes with Elliott- who had quite the bemused expression on his face. “You’re rather absorbed in that drawing of yours over there. Mind if I ask what the subject of your interest may be?” he asked curiously, closing his book and setting it down gently on the table.

Maria blushed, hoping the low lighting in her corner of the library would hide this. She’d been caught, and smiled nervously, shaking her head, “oh it’s nothing, just some random sketches. Birds and all that.”

“Interesting. You were simply staring at me quite intensely, is all. I thought for a moment that you may have been drawing me,” Elliott mused aloud, “though if you were to be doing that, I wouldn’t at all be upset. I’d be quite flattered, really, but that’s neither here nor there.”

“Ahahaha, _yeahhh_ ,” she laughed awkwardly, gripping onto the edges of her sketchbook before letting out a long sigh. 

“... okay, fine, I _was_ drawing you,” she admitted quietly as she averted her eyes.

The sound of a chair being pushed against the wooden floor caught her attention, and inwardly she cursed as she spied the writer walking over in the corner of her eye. “May I see it?” he asked curiously.

She forced herself to look up at him and the red that dusted her cheeks only intensified as they made eye contact. Shyly she lifted her drawing pad up to him and he grasped it gently, holding it in his hands as though it were a precious artifact.

Maria attempted to gauge his reaction by looking at his expression, but it was hard to assume what he was thinking as he stood there, green eyes skimming over the paper as they took in the details of her sketches. This felt different, somehow, then any previous time in the past where someone else had looked at her art or even critiqued. For some reason in her mind it just felt _different_ when it was Elliott. As though more was on the line if he were to judge her skills.

After half a minute or so of unbearable silence he finally spoke up. “Maria, this is absolutely gorgeous, and I’m not just saying that because it’s a drawing of me. Dare I say it might just look better than the real thing,” he complimented her teasingly.

Somehow she blushed even **more** hearing this and stammered out, “t-thanks, it’s nothing really. You were um… f-fun to draw?” _‘What does that even mean? Yoba I sound so stupid!’_ she screamed in her mind, her face hotter than the sun at this point.

“Happy to know I was an entertaining subject to portray,” he chuckled happily, taking one last look at the drawing, “I do quite like the way you drew my face as well, I appreciate the defined jawline you’ve generously gifted me.”

The farmer groaned in light hearted embarrassment as she took her sketchbook back. The rest of the morning went on relatively smoothly, and just before noon the two had packed their things and agreed to go out for lunch together.

“If the saloon’s open already we can swing by and see Gus’ special today, my treat,” Maria offered as the walked out of the museum and into the summer heat.

Elliott smiled down at her, “you’re far too kind, but I do appreciate the offer. I’m having to be very selective with how I spend my gold until my publishing deal goes through and I begin to collect royalties. However, once I send my final edit I should receive an advance payment- six thousand gold, how exciting is that?”

“Very,” the farmer grinned.

They passed by the ice cream stand that Alex manned during the summer, only to see a group surrounding it today. Haley, Abigail, Sebastian, and Sam were all talking in hushed voices around the stand, taking advantage of it’s large umbrella for shade.

Abigail glanced over and gasped, “Maria! Perfect, get over here- are you free for the rest of today?”

She paused, feeling awkward now that six pairs of eyes were all trained on her, “yeah, I guess I am. Why?”

“Because we are getting **out** of this damn town today,” Haley answered dramatically, “it’s soooooooo hot, we need an escape. There’s a waterpark up the coast, it’s a forty-five minute drive. The next bus there is arriving at half past twelve, think you could meet us at the bus stop by then?”

“If I run,” she answered with a laugh, “sounds fun though. Am I allowed to invite other people to come with?”

“Depends,” Alex piped up from behind his stand, and though Maria couldn’t see it she suspected he had his hands in the ice box to battle the heat, “are the people you wanna invite chill?”

The farmer hummed and stepped back before turning to look at Elliott, who’d been standing there politely as she spoke with her friends. She gave him a dramatic look over before nodding her head and turning back to the group, “I’d say he’s pretty chill. At least eight-five percent chill.”

“Where’s the other fifteen percent?” he quickly asked, feigning upset.

She tapped her chin and pretended to be in deep thought, “the other fifteen percent is when you coop yourself in that cabin.”

He gasped, clasping a hand over his chest in an exaggerated fashion, “I am deeply wounded by this! I assumed you of all people would understand why I stay home, it’s to hone my craft! Perfect my writing and follow my dreams-”

“When you two are done arguing like a married couple will you agree to come with us?” Sebastian interjected, cutting the writer’s speech off (and getting some rather raucous laughter out of Sam).

As soon as she heard the words ‘married couple’ being thrown at her and Elliott, Maria stuttered and went wide eyed, “y-yeah, it sounds pretty fun. I wouldn’t mind going, would you?”

She turned to look up at the writer, only to see that he had the same deep red blush as her, likely from the married couple comment, “Oh, it does sound fun, and I do need some time away from my current project, I’d have absolutely no issues in tagging along on this escapade.”

“I can give Leah a call and see if she wants to come along too,” Maria suggested, reaching to her back pocket for her phone.

“Great!” Haley cheered, practically jumping up from where she’d previously been leaning against the ice cream stand, “meet us at the bus stop in thirty minutes, kay?”

“You got it,” the farmer grinned, saying a quick goodbye to everyone before dashing away back home.

* * *

Her time in the farm house was a blur as she sprinted around in a mad dash to get ready in time. As soon as she walked through the front door she began to strip off her clothing (Robin was luckily working on the house’s exterior at this time so Maria could get ready without the carpenter seeing anything).

After going through some of her clothes she decided on a teal bikini, one with high waisted bottoms that she considered quite modest- at least when it came to swimwear. She threw a sheer tunic dress over top of her swimsuit, something she could easily slip off and store as soon as they arrived at the water park.

A curious meow caught her attention as she grabbed her sandals and she turned to see Orion on top of the coffee table, pawing at a jewelry box. “Hey hey hey, what’d I say about touching this? It’s special,” she quickly chastised him as she snatched the box away.

The box in question was small and within it was a necklace- it’d been Elliott’s birthday gift for her when he returned from Zuzu City. It’s chain was a silver rope and it’s pendant was a crescent moon with a small glimmering Opal embedded into it. 

She was far too afraid to wear it around the town, afraid it’d get scuffed or dirty, so she kept it in its box until she had a proper occasion for it.

Setting her gift back down, she grabbed an old string bag she’d used during her days in college and stuffed the necessities into it- a towel, change of clothes, a bottle of sunscreen (she didn’t remember when or where she’d bought it, but she’d bring it along anyways), and her wallet.

Checking the time she saw she only had five minutes left, and quickly tied her hair up, grabbed a pair of sunglasses, and snatched her phone off of the bed before running out of the door, shouting a goodbye to Robin as she sprinted down the dirt path to the bus stop.

* * *

After a few minutes of waiting, everyone had arrived at the meetup spot.

Haley and Alex were first, Haley in a frilly light-pink bikini with a sheer robe tied around her waist to cover up, and Alex in some simple green swimming shorts and a sleeveless workout tee. 

Sam, Sebastian, and Abigail showed up as a trio, as per usual. Abigail in a deep purple one-piece and a pair of denim shorts, Sam in a pair of colorful trunks and his raggedy blue jacket, and Sebastian in a matching pair of black swimming shorts and a sleeveless black hoodie (Maria noted that this was the first time she’d seen Sebastian’s arms and she thought it was very _very_ weird).

Leah was next, her green swimsuit hidden beneath a long, flowing maxi dress, and a book bag slung over her shoulder that was no doubt full of art supplies.

And finally Elliott showed up, just a minute past the half hour mark but no one was too upset since his trek to the bus stop was the longest. He wore a pair of red trunks and a see-through button up shirt, and Maria once again caught herself staring at his body just as she’d done weeks previous during their day on the beach. In his arms was a book, though she couldn’t see it’s title.

The group didn’t have to wait very long for the bus to show up, sputtering and rolling up to the side of the street. The doors swung open and they were greeted by a rather bored looking woman, who simply nodded her head for them to get on and pointed at the payment slot.

After all eight of them had paid for their bus tickets they found their seats on the vehicle, and Maria quickly claimed a window seat so she could look out on the valley during the ride.

“Would you mind if I sat beside you?” a voice asked, as she tilted her head to the side to see Elliott stood in the aisle.

She smiled, “of course, you know I wouldn’t care.”

“It’s still courteous to ask beforehand,” he replied as he sat down. 

The bus seats weren’t very wide, and no matter how Maria adjusted their legs would always be touching one another’s. She thought it silly that casual touching such as this could make her feel so flustered, yet here she was, blushing because of her thigh brushing against his.

If Elliott was bothered by the contact, he didn’t make any mention of it. He simply cracked his book open and settled into his seat as the bus began to drive away, leaving Pelican Town and heading towards the highway that would take them up the coastline.

The farmer resigned herself to looking out the window, daydreaming absentmindedly and attempting to push away all her thoughts of the man beside her during the entirety of the car ride.

* * *

The waterpark was massive. As soon as the group entered the premises, everywhere they looked had something to do- whether it be various water slides, wave pools, or relaxing swimming areas. Encircling the entire park was a mile long lazy river with various points of entry and exit.

The first thing they did was find a place to leave all their belongings, and they’d been lucky enough to nab five poolside chairs that a family had left open moments earlier. As the group set their bags and towels down, Sam was raving about one of the rides in the park

“It’s the tallest water slide on this side of the Republic! We’ve got to go on it while we’re here, I hear it’s killer!” he exclaimed as he shrugged off his jacket.

Elliott paled, “killer?”

“It’s slang,” Maria giggled, reassuring the writer, “it pretty much means awesome.”

His mouth formed an ‘o’ shape as he nodded in understanding, setting down his book on a neatly folded towel that Leah had brought along for him.

“Before we go on any rides I wanna find some food,” Abigail interjected, “I’m starving.”

“Maybe you wouldn’t be so starving if you didn’t skip breakfast,” Sebastian muttered besides her.

Abigail rolled her eyes, “I’m not taking life advice from the basement dweller.”

Maria chuckled as she pointed a finger at the pair, “now who’s bickering like a married couple?”

Both of them flushed, their cheeks going dark red, and the farmer was satisfied with her cheeky payback for the comment made earlier.

After discussing for a few minutes they found a small diner in the center of the park, themed around pirates and mermaids. The menu was relatively simple in terms of food; mostly burgers, sandwiches, chicken options, fries, etc. 

“These prices are ridiculous,” Leah mumbled as she and Elliott looked up at the wall listing all their items, and she was right, as even just a side of fries totaled six hundred gold.

“... I can pay for the three of us,” Maria offered.

Elliott looked shock, “I couldn’t ask you to do that for me, really-”

“How much was that necklace?” the farmer shot back, raising a brow.

He pursed his lips, “that was far different then our current situation, it was for your birthday.”

She shrugged her shoulders, “I have enough money, I really don’t mind. I know that both of you have to spend your money carefully right now, so just let me do this as your friend, alright?”

Leah and Elliott shared a look before the two sighed and nodded, causing a grin to spread on the farmers lips.

* * *

Maria happily took sips of her vanilla milkshake as she leaned back in her chair, enjoying the shade that a large beach umbrella offered as she looked around the waterpark. Everyone had finished their meals by now and were relaxing on this hot summer day- well, everyone except for Sam.

The blonde was eagerly waiting, practically bouncing from one foot to his other. “Are you guys done yet?”

“Sam that’s like the fifth time you’ve asked now,” Haley bit back, looking into her compact mirror as she put on lip gloss.

“There’s gonna be a long line if we wait any longerrr,” he groaned.

“I don’t know how Jodi puts up with you when you get like this,” Sebastian teased.

Sam sneered, “don’t refer to my mom with her name, that’s weird.”

“Do you want me to say what I called her in bed last night?” Abigail joked, and immediately the blonde takes on a look of intense disgust.

“Ewwww, what the fuck, Abby!” 

Maria giggled at the sight, before turning to her side to look over at her other pair of friends. Leah was sketching into a drawing pad she’d brought, likely ideas for a new sculpture, whereas Elliott had returned to thumbing through the book he’d brought along.

“If we go to the slide now will you stop complaining, you big baby?” Alex asked.

“YES!” Sam exclaimed, throwing his arms up.

Alex glances over to Maria, “you three ready to go?”

“Oh yeah, just gimme a moment,” she replies, getting up from her seat. Reaching for the bottom of her cover-up, she lifts it up and her head, revealing her swimsuit. As she folds the short dress she doesn’t dare look up, well aware of the fact that she had eyes on her.

She makes the mistake of glancing up, just once, only to see Elliott peering at her over the edge of his book. His eyes trail down on her body and she quickly looks away before he can realize she caught him staring.

“I’m uh, ready now,” she mumbles somewhat shyly, glancing over to see both Sam and Sebastian staring at her as well (Sam, notably, with his jaw dropped).

Within minutes the group of eight are walking throughout the park and she’s able to shake off the awkward feeling from before. They’re guided by a very excited Sam who seemingly knew the park layout like the back of his hand. Finally they could see it, an incredibly tall and vibrant blue waterslide.

There was a stairwell that would take you to the very top, where seemingly you’d get into a tube and slide down a large incline, before riding up a short hill and going through various tunnels and low-incline spins, before finally being deposited into a deep pool at the mouth of the slide.

“Here it is! The Kraken, eleven stories tall,” Sam announced as they arrived at the bottom of the staircase.

“Eleven stories?” Haley gasped, “you expect me to walk all the way up there?”

“Don’t worry babe, I can carry you,” Alex offered, wrapping his arm around her waist and giving her a charming grin.

She smiled, “awh, my hero~” 

They leaned in for a kiss but were interrupted by Sam fake-gagging, “grossss, don’t be all mushy around us, get a room.”

Alex simply flipped him off, and after a small amount of bickering which was settled by Abigail pulling Sam by the ear, and soon they were ascending up the stairwell.

About half way up they stopped, only because of the line in front of them. Luckily, by the looks of it the line moved relatively fast.

“Should be at the top in about twenty five minutes,” Sebastian reasoned, leaning coolly against the railing of the stairs.

“Wow… we’re really high up,” Maria gasped, peeking over the edge and to the park down below. She was proud of herself in a way, at the beginning of the year a vertical trek like this would’ve had her incredibly out of breath, but she felt fine.

Elliott, on the other hand, wasn’t fairing as well. He certainly didn’t look exhausted, but he was slightly red-faced and his chest heaved slightly.

“You alright?” Maria asked curiously, gently placing her hand on his arm as she looked up at him.

He looked down at her and nodded, taking in a deep breath as he brushed his hair from his face, “yes, thank you. I’m just not so accustomed to so much physical activity.”

“... you know you say that, but your figure tells a completely different story,” she mumbled, not really thinking before she spoke.

Elliott eyes widened somewhat, “what did you-”

“Nothing!” she quickly answered, not giving him the time to even ask his question before turning away once more.

The line moved steadily, and as they neared the top Sam suddenly slapped his forehead and groaned, “Ohhh, I forgot to tell you all.”

“Forgot to tell us what?” Leah deadpanned.

“You’ve got to pair up to ride the slide, the tubes are two-seaters,” he explained, “there’s an even number of us though, so it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“I’ve got my partner,” Haley grinned, planting a kiss on Alex’s cheek.

“Who are you riding with, Abby?” Sam asked her curiously, “probably gonna be Seb-”

“Leah.” she answered with a shrug of her shoulders.

“... me?” Leah murmured, a tad wide eyed.

“Why not. These two stress me out, especially when I have to pick between them,” Abigail replied with a cheeky smile.

“Guess I’ll share a tube with this nerd then-” Sam began, clapping Sebastian on the back before being cut off.

“Call me a nerd again and you’re losing that hand.”

“So that leaves… us,” Maria realized, turning to look over at her auburn-haired friend.

“Indeed it does,” he nodded, “not that I mind. Do you”

The farmer shook her head and grinned, “not one bit.”

After a bit more chatter and ascending a few more flights of stairs, they finally reached the top. There were two lifeguards, one would retrieve the two-seaters tubes off of a large pulley system and help riders be seated in them before eventually sending them down the slide, the other lifeguard would look down to the pool below and wait for a signal to make sure it was safe to send the pair down.

The lifeguard who awaited the signals, a brunette, looked over at the group. “You all already pair off?”

“Yup!” Sam answered, practically brimming with excitement to finally experience the water slide for himself.

The lifeguard who handled the tubes sent the pair before them down the slides, and their screams faded away as they descended. “Alright, who’s next?” he asked with a smile as he turned to look at them all.

To no one’s surprise, Sam bounded up, followed by Sebastian who only seemed moderately thrilled for what was to come. A tube was set down before them and they got seated, Sebastian in the back and Sam in front. 

“No homo?” Sam asked with a boisterous laugh.

Sebastian simply rolled his eyes and muttered, “shut up.”

The second lifeguard peered down towards the pool, before giving a two fingered signal towards the lifeguard near the slide. Unceremoniously he pushed Sam and Sebastian’s tube with his foot and sent the pair of boys away, the blonde’s scream loud enough to be heard for miles around.

Haley and Alex were next up, and Alex carefully helped his girlfriend get seated in the front of the tube before sitting down behind her. A few moments passed and they two were being sent away. Leah and Abigail followed, the redhead staying behind momentarily.

“Good luck,” she said, winking at Elliott before getting seated in the front of the tube.

“... what was that about? It’s just a slide,” Maria murmured curiously.

When she looked over at Elliott, however, the writer was averting his green eyes towards the floor, red blush once again covering his face. Before either could say anything, they were being called up by the lifeguards.

The main one besides the slide pulled up a bright yellow double-seater and sat it down in the small pool of water at the slide’s entrance. “It’s usually safest if the taller person rides in the back,” he informed them, pointing at the writer.

He nodded and moved in front of Maria, getting seated in the back and gripping onto the black handles tightly. The farmer followed, shivering as her feet touched the slide’s cold water before she seated herself.

With the format of the tube, she was forced to sit between Elliot’s legs, but tried not to think about it too much as she looked forward.

“It feels like we’re twice as high now that we’re up at the top,” she heard him say behind her.

“Y-yeah,” she laughed nervously, trying desperately not to think about how _close_ she was to him right now.

“I’m beginning to regret agreeing to this-” the writer began, but before he could finish their tube was being nudged and swept into the jets which only propelled it forward faster.

“Too late now!” Maria exclaimed as the tube tilted over the edge of the drop.

“Enjoy your trip on The Kraken!” the lifeguard yelled out, but was barely able to hear him finish as they shot downwards.

Both of them screamed at the top of their lungs, but the farmer’s fear quickly turned into enjoyment as they raced down the slope. The adrenaline coursing through her made it easy to forget where she was seated, and she whooped and hollered as the tube flew forward through tunnels and over small hills.

All too soon, it was over, and the tube dropped into a pool where another lifeguard waited to help them out. Maria slipped out of the tube and swam towards the pool’s edge, pushing herself up and lifting herself out of the water, all the while wearing a massive grin on her face.

“That was amazing!” she giggled as she walked towards the group.

Water splashed behind her, and she turned back to see Elliott climbing out of the pool as well. “That was absolutely terrifying, I swear my heart stopped beating.”

Maria smiled, helping him out of the pool as the group decided where to go next. Haley suggested the lazy river and they were off, the group in higher spirits and the stress of the summer’s heat wave melting away.

* * *

The afternoon slowly became evening, the sun starting to set at around seven o’clock. After a long day of swimming and slides and all sorts of thrills, Maria was pretty tuckered out. “I think I’m gonna go ahead and change,” she let her friends know, grabbing her bag and her towel.

“We’ll hold down the fort,” Leah replied from the poolside chair she’d claimed, “want anyone to go with you, though? I’ve seen some sketchy looking guys around.”

The farmer thought about it momentarily, looking out to the pool they were sat by. The changing rooms were on the other side, not exactly in the line of sight of any of her friends. But it’d be a quick trip, and she was confident in her ability to fend for herself.

“I should be fine,” she assured her friend, “if I’m not back in twenty minutes though… then there may be some cause for concern.”

The sculptor nodded and Maria tossed a goodbye over her shoulder as she walked away. She quickly walked around the edge of the pool, staying well within the view of the various lifeguards seated around. It only took her a minute to get to the changing rooms and she found an empty stall to lock herself in.

Peeling off her still wet bikini, she toweled herself off before wrapping the wet fabric and setting it aside. She slipped on her undergarments, a pair of shorts, and a white halter top. Grabbing all her belongings, she put her sandals back on last before unlocking the stall once more and walking away from the changing rooms. 

As soon as she walked out of the building, however, there was a sudden whistle that caught her attention. Out of the corner of her eye she could see three men leaning against the wall of the building. The tallest was quite bulky, with a buzzed haircut and a right arm decorated in tattoos, and the other two looked quite similar, practically like twins, with lanky figures and longer, dark hair.

“What’s a cute little thing like you doing all alone?” the tallest asked, and she felt disgusted watching his eyes drink in her appearance.

“... I’m not alone, and I’m actually going to get back to my friends right now, so bye fellas,” she sighed, shouldering her bag and walking a few more paces before being interrupted once more.

“Oh c’mon,” one of the twins called out, “I’m sure we could give you a better time than those friends of yours.”

“Oh yea, a sweet thing like you? You’d love to come for a spin with us,” his brother agreed.

Maria scowled, turning to face the trio, “is this how you pick up women? By harassing them in waterparks? I’d tell you to try and improve your game but with the slimy attitude you all possess you’re not deserving of women in the first place. Now leave me _alone_.”

The scumbag grin that the tallest previously wore melted into an angry sneer, “what the fuck did you just say about us?”

“Sorry, do I need to dumb it down for you three? I called you a bunch of sick asshats, now fuck **off**!” she growled, turning on her heel and heading back towards the pool.

She was only able to take a few steps before a hand tightly latched onto her wrist and tug her backwards. She yelped, and just as she reeled her free arm back in an attempt to throw a punch, his grip loosened.

Maria was confused, but she quickly saw what’d stopped her aggravator. Her arm was being held by the tallest of the trio, but there was a hand on his shoulder- Elliott’s.

“Sir, if you could unhand her that would be greatly appreciated. I do believe there’s no need for violence, especially as there’s numerous staff in the area that could easily be called upon if you were to harm her,” the writer suggested, speaking in a smooth voice in an attempt to ease the situation.

“Oh yeah?” the creep questioned, “what’s this dumb bitch got to do with you, huh?”

Maria’s blood was boiling. ‘ _Dumb bitch?’._ If Elliott wasn’t here she would’ve beat this guy’s face in by now.

Elliott, however, took a deep breath, and the farmer realized that him being so calm in this situation was taking him all of his will power. 

“This… quote, ‘dumb bitch’, is actually my _fiancee_ , and the way you’re treating her is reprehensible at _best_. I am attempting to keep my cool at this moment, but if you don’t let go of her there will be nothing stopping me from getting the proper authorities involved for harassment and assault- and I’m sure you don’t want that, do you?” he questioned.

The stranger hesitated before finally letting go and Maria quickly pulled her arm back and moved to stand behind Elliott.

“I don’t see no ring on either of you,” he grunted.

“Why would I wear my engagement ring to a waterpark, idiot,” the farmer deadpanned, clenching her fists.

“ _Dear_ , there’s no need for that,” Elliott mumbled, stressing the pet name as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, “now, we’ll be taking our leave. Thank you very much for your cooperation… gentlemen.”

Before any of the three creeps could say anything more, the pair quickly walked away, Elliott keeping a secure grasp on Maria as they walked around the pool back towards their seats.

“Were you mad?” she asked curiously, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you mad before.”

Elliott laughed, “mad? Quite the understatement, I was furious, but I had to control that anger to defuse the situation.”

“I can’t control myself when I’m mad, I was seconds away from rearranging that guys face before you intervened,” Maria sighed, getting a lighthearted laugh out of the writer.

“... fiancee?” she finally questioned once they were out of earshot.

“Apologies, truly, if that made you uncomfortable. But those three are the type that only see women as the possessions of other men. I assumed that if I asserted that you were already taken by a man, me specifically, that they would back off since they’d see you as ‘claimed territory’, so it were. It’s a disgusting mindset, but it worked to our favor. Again, I’m sorry for putting you in that position, but I saw it necessary,” he explained, letting go of her shoulder and dropping his arm to the side.

“Don’t worry, I understand why you did it. Plus, if any man would have called me his fiancee, I guess you weren’t the _worst_ option,” she giggled, “but I will be bringing this up again in the future, _fiance._ ”

Elliott blushed and looked away, and there was a small, teasing voice in the back of Maria’s mind that snagged onto the idea of Elliott calling her ‘fiancee’ and _ohhh_ did that part of her mind enjoy it.

* * *

The bus ride back to Pelican Town was rather uneventful, quiet as most of the group had fallen asleep on the way home, including Maria.

She was woken up by gentle nudging, and groggily opened her eyes to realize two things- they were almost at the stop, and her head was on Elliott’s shoulder.

“Shit,” she gasped quietly, as not to wake anyone else up, “sorry! Why didn’t you wake me up? I could’ve moved.”

The writer shrugged his shoulders, smiling sweetly at her, “I simply didn’t mind. There was no harm in you leaning against me, it was quite comfortable actually.”

She flushed, and within moments the bus had stopped. “Final stop!” the driver called out, and the sign at the front of the bus flashed ‘Pelican Town’ repeatedly in bright green lettering.

Sebastian shook both Abigail and Sam, both of whom had been leaning against him in the very back of the bus as Alex gingerly woke Haley up, who looked rather annoyed at having been forced awake. Leah however had been awake the entire trip, listening to music from her phone and gazing out the window longingly.

The group exited the bus one by one, thanking the driver before she rode away. Everyone said their goodbyes and began to part ways, Maria noticed that Elliott stayed beside her.

“May I walk you home?” he offered, nodding his head towards the dirt path that led to the farm.

“Are you sure? It’s gonna be a long walk back to the beach if you do,” she murmured, unsure. It wasn’t like she _didn’t_ want to spend more time with him, she simply didn’t want to be a burden.

“You paid for my entire day- my ticket of entry for the park, my lunch, and my dinner. The least I can do in return is make sure you arrive home safely,” he replied.

“Well.. alright, c’mon,” she sighed, the corner of her lip quirking up into a smile, “I think Robin finished construction so you’ll get to see the newly upgraded farmhouse before everyone else too.”

The pair walked side by side in comfortable silent, the ambient sound of crickets filling the nighttime air. The moon hung high in the sky above them, only half full, and the sight of the celestial body made the farmer think back towards that gorgeous necklace he’d given her.

Her house was quite a sight to see now. The old wood had all been ripped out and the building had more than doubled in size, as well as the porch, giving her a lot more space for decoration and furniture.

“Robin did a wonderful job, this is quite lovely,” Elliott murmured fondly as they stepped up to the front door.

“Mhmm, she sure did,” Maria agreed, “by the way… thanks, for walking me home and for helping me with those guys at the park, I really appreciate it… _fiance_.”

She held her hand out to him as she called him fiance, meaning to shake his in solidarity. However, when he grasped her hand, he turned it and lifted it to his face, pressing his lips to the back of her palm in a kiss. “Of course, fiancee, you can be sure that I will always be there to help,” he mumbled, his lips ghosting over her skin.

She blushed and giggled nervously, but didn’t dare pull her arm away. 

Elliott, however, pulled back, brows furrowed in concern. “Was that too much? It was for the act, apologies if I-”

“Elliott- please, if you ever did something wrong that upset me or made me uncomfortable I would let you know. Trust me. That was- you’re-... you’re fine, don’t worry about it,” she smiled up at him, gingerly pulling her hand away.

He looked apologetic, but nodded regardless. “I’ll leave you be now. It’s getting late and I have no doubt that you’ll be needing plenty of rest for your work tomorrow,” he sighed.

She frowned, not wanting him to go yet, “yeah, you’re right. Goodnight, have a safe trip home.”

“Pelican Town is undoubtedly the safest place in the Republic, I’ll be more than fine venturing home,” he replied.

“You say that, and you still walked me home,” she retorted in a teasing manner.

He lifted a finger in an attempt to make an argument but dropped it when he could think of nothing, “... fair point, you’re far too clever for me at times. Regardless, goodnight, and have the sweetest of dreams.”

“You too,” she mumbled, watching him retreat as he stepped down the steps of her porch.

She unlocked the door and stepped into her home, flicking on the lights. _As_ she flicked on the lights, a sudden, quiet whirring sound filled the air, and Maria remembered that she had air conditioning now.

She gasped and threw the door open, leaning off of her porch to see Elliott approaching the east exit of her farm “I HAVE AC NOW!” she yelled happily.

When she heard the writer chuckle in the distance, she smiled, happy to know they were still on good, if not somewhat awkward, terms.

  
She walked back inside of her now conditioned home and let out a relaxed sigh. _‘It was a good day.’_ she mused to herself, looking down at the hand that Elliott kissed, _‘a very, very good day.’_

* * *

Andddd another bonus drawing because I just _had_ to draw the waterslide scene:

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta love that sweet, sweet Maria/Elliott content
> 
> This chapter was incredibly fun to write! And I had the waterslide scene planned out for WEEKS now lol
> 
> Also, we're now nearing the part of the story where progress in a certain relationship will begin being made 👀
> 
> Also also: I've been listening/watching a lot of animatics this week from various fandoms, and I found a song called 'They're Only Human' from the English version of the Death Note musical (which, I had no idea Death Note had a musical??? good for them lol), but ANYWAYS, this song is amazing? It boils humanity down to it's simplest version and it looks at from the point of view of a tired cynic and the point of you of a stoic empath, and it's so neat? Y'all should give it a listen, it's a good time.
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are always incredibly appreciated!! I love hearing your guys feedback, it's very uplifting, and sometimes you guys write the funniest, wittiest things for me to read when I wake up :p


	11. The Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Dance of Moonlight Jellies will sadly not be observed this Summer due to a strong, oncoming storm...

Summer, for the most part, had gone and went. It’s end was nearing and it seemed as though the whole town was more than grateful for this. The temperature was beginning to cool, and the days where the sun’s light was harsh and unforgiving were now few and far between.

The season had gone quite well for the farmer. Her harvests had been fruitful, she was quickly earning back all the savings she’d spent on her house’s renovation, and she’d upgraded her coop and bought another pair of chickens and two ducks (Aquila, Columba, Apus, and Grus respectively).

Maria had taken advantage of the upcoming change in season and planted rows of corn seeds, which would hopefully tide her over for the first few weeks of Fall when the rest of her crops would be in their first stages of growth. 

It was the final day of Summer, and the season’s second festival would be taking place later that night. The first festival had gone quite well, a casual luau on the beach with a massive pot of communal soup. Maria had brought one of her biggest, juiciest pink melons to contribute to the meal, but her primary goal that day was enjoying a sunny day by the sea and having a good time with her friends.

It was exactly what she’d accomplished that day, and she was hoping to do the same tonight. First, she’d have to finish her farm chores.

Currently she was cutting down and uprooting all her crops- aside from the corn stalks. Luck was on her side as her blueberries had ripened just on time for the season’s end, so now she was plucking each round little berry off of the bush and dropping them into her wicker basket.

She hummed absentmindedly as she worked, filling her basket to the brim before digging up the bush roots and carrying the foliage to her compost bin. This continued for the rest of the morning, she’d scavenge what edible parts were left of her crops as she cleared the land in preparation for Fall. Once done she split her harvest, half going in her produce bin to be collected by Mayor Lewis, and half going into the kitchen’s fridge and cabinets to be used for her cooking later on.

“Orion did you hide the TV remote again?” she asked the feline, scooping him into her arms as she peered around the living room. The Burmese meows loudly and gazes up at her with wide eyes. The farmer purses her lips, “don’t act so innocent, little man, you’ve hid my things before.”

Loosening her hold, he wriggled around in her arms momentarily before pushing off of her chest and hopping onto the couch, curling up right beside the remote she’d been searching for moments before.

Grabbing it, she presses a familiar combination of buttons to turn the television onto the news channel. The voice of the Stardew Valley weatherman begins to drone on as she saunters back into the kitchen, grabbing the necessary ingredients to make a garden salad.

_“... What we’d forecasted last week as a group of simple showers has changed drastically. What satellites are showing us now appears to be heavy thunderstorms, with the potential for flash flooding in low-lying areas. These will begin in a matter of hours, so if you had any nighttime or weekend plans you might want to think about rescheduling. However following these storms, next week appears to be full of clear skies- a brilliant start to the Fall season, yes? We should all be looking forward to that.”_

A frown tugged on Maria’s lips as she mixed vinegar into her salad greens. “A thunderstorm? The mayor’s gonna have to cancel tonight’s events, the beach will be too dangerous with the flood warning in place,” she muttered to herself, “damn. And I was really looking forward to seeing those jellyfish. Oh well. I’ll be fine as long as I have my trusty headphones. Isn’t that right Orion?”

She called the feline’s name out over her shoulder, merely getting a loud mewl in response as she continued to mix her salad together. ‘ _Right… we’ll be fine, you and I.’_

* * *

Wind rattled the docks, making the wooden boards creak and groan as they resisted the push from the air.

“Thanks so much for helping us put away the set up Elliott,” Mayor Lewis piped up, clapping the writer on the shoulder, “shame that we had to cancel the festival, I look forward to it ever year.”

The auburn-haired man nodded as he looked out towards the sea. The waters had darkened considerably as stark grey clouds began to roll in, the waves pushing further and further up on the shoreline. “Yes it is a shame, but there is always next year, and I sure it shall be a wondrous sight as always.. You should be returning to your own home though, Lewis, this horrible weather is picking up quite quickly.”

The mayor nodded, the hairs of his mustache bristling as he stepped away, “ah you’re right, you get inside too, make sure to lock those windows tight. Stay safe.”

“You as well,” Elliott replied politely as the elder man began to walk away towards the northern bridge. He looked towards the ever-darkening clouds with a frown before turning on his heel, quickly seeking out the safe shelter of his small cabin. He followed the instructions of the mayor, tightly shutting the door and windows, snapping the blinds shut.

The previous Summer, a nasty thunderstorm which looked quite similar to the one currently rolling in had led to multiple leaks in the cabin’s roof, and as a solution he’d paid Robin to overhaul and replace the roof in its entirety, piece by piece. So if luck was on his side he wouldn’t have to struggle with those same issues.

Just as soon as he took a seat at his writing desk, the rain began to pour down- hard. A consistent drumming against the side of his home became louder than his own thoughts. He attempted to lift his pen and scrawl a handful of notes down, but with the noise of the storm he could barely think.

A rather annoyed sigh escaped his lips, yet the storm cut him off once again- this time with a crack of thunder, loud enough to rattle his cabin. “My word, it’s as though the heavens themselves are displeased…” he murmured, adjusting the cuff of his coat, “that was quite loud. I’d bet that even Maria heard it on the farm.”

Something clicked in the writer’s mind. He remembered a discussion from months ago, a detail the farmer had mentioned while telling a story.

Her fear of lightning and thunder.

Elliott quickly jumped out of his chair, grabbing his phone from off of his bed and pulling up her contact information to call her.

One ring. Two. Three, and then a fourth. He was sent to voicemail.

He called two more times, then sent a text message to the farmer. No reply. 

He called Leah, she hadn’t heard anything from Maria either. 

A feeling of dread had settled deep within the writer’s gut. A heavy feeling pressed down on his chest, he could _feel_ it. Something was wrong.

Another crack of thunder shook him out of his thoughts and he made a decision- though whether or not he’d regret this was something he could grapple with another time. Hastily moving to his wardrobe, he dug out an old raincoat he hadn’t worn in quite sometime and threw it on over the coat he already wore. He pocketed his phone, tied his hair back into a tight bun, and took in a deep breath before approaching the door.

He gripped the handle and waited momentarily- light flashed outside his sealed window, another strike of lightning. With as much courage as he could muster he flung the door open, immediately feeling the resistance of wind pressing against his body and droplets of hard, heavy water pattering against his exposed skin.

Shutting and locking the door behind him, he set out north with a brisk pace, the sinking, nervous feeling in his chest never once lifting as he set forth towards Amanecer Farm.

* * *

Half an hour later, Elliott trudged his way up the familiar dirt path, his shoes caked in mud and his hands red as they’d been sheltering his face from the pounding rain.

The sky had darkened considerably, it was past nine o’clock now and the lack of light offered by the night was by no means helping the writer in his small quest.

He quickly walked past through the east entrance, the farm’s sign which would normally be a welcoming sight now rocked back and forth in the wind, creaking and groaning ominously. The rows of corn that Maria had proudly shown off weeks before now swayed dangerously, stray leaves blowing off of the stalks and flying away.

The lights of the farmhouse were turned off, and there was very little that he could see through the shuttered blinds as he walked up the porch steps. Grateful for the shelter the patio’s overhang offered, he was able to pull down the hood of his raincoat as he frantically knocked on the house’s front door.

His knuckles rapped on the door in quick succession and he waited momentarily, giving Maria time to walk across the house and answer if she was indeed home. There was no answer. He knocked once more, attempting to ignore the encroaching wave of anxiety and the paranoid thoughts which began to fill his mind.

He waited on the porch for another minute. Still no answer.

_‘This is horrible, I should have checked in on her sooner- oh, what kind of friend am I? If she’s not sheltered at home, wherever could she be? She’s far too smart to have gone into the forest with an oncoming storm, especially with her phobia-’_

His thoughts were racing as he rambled in his mind, and he set his hand down on the door’s handle as he inwardly panicked- then the handle moved.

His train of thought crashed as he jiggled the doorknob. The door was unlocked. His rushing adrenaline overtook his regular common courtesy and he pushed the door open and he stepped inside the home.

The walls of the house deafened the noise of the pouring rain as he gently shut the door, looking around the living room in search of the farmer. Odd things were out of place, a blanket strewn on the floor and an overturned box of items in the corner of the room. There was a broken mug on the floor of her small kitchen leaving cracked pieces of ceramic in various places.

When he cautiously pressed the door of her bedroom open, his face paled at the sight. The covers of her bed had been stripped away, and a window had been left partially open, the wind of the storm had seemingly blown the blinds off of their rack and onto the floor. Quickly, Elliott gripped the window pane and snapped it shut, growing more and more desperate in his search-

A sob.

A sob, just barely able to be heard over the sounds of rain and wind slamming against the sides of the house. The writer looked frantically for the noise’s source; the bedroom closet, a small room in the back of the house which he almost always overlooked during his visits.

His legs moved before he even willed them to, and his heart dropped once he opened the door.

A figure was wrapped in blankets, curled up on their side and clinging to them self as they shakily wept on the small floor space the single person closet offered.

“Maria?” Elliott croaked out, still unable to register the sorry state she was in.

A loud sniffle could be heard as she shuffled the fabrics around, before her bleary, watery eyes met his. He was able to see her tear-stained cheeks disheveled state of dress and within seconds he’d dropped to the ground.

He quickly took off his soaking wet coats and tossed them both aside, kneeling besides her with shaking hands.

“E-Elliott?” she stammered sadly, attempting to wipe her cheeks with the back of her palm, “s-sorry, I- I just-”

Her voice wavered and her lip trembled as she spoke, and the very sight broke the writer’s heart. To see someone he knew so well, someone who he’d always seen as confident and strong and sweet and kind broken down to this state hurt him on a level he couldn’t quite comprehend.

“Dearest, why on earth are you saying sorry? You’ve done nothing to warrant any apology,” he cut her off in a soft tone of voice, the pet name spilling out before he could think. He leaned forward and gently wrapped his arms around her shaking form, pulling her up so she could lean against him rather than laying on the floorboards.

He attempted to sooth her by rubbing his hand up and down her arm, using his other hand to softly wipe the few tears that continued to roll down her cheeks. “Everything’s okay, I promise you. I’m here, and you’re safe,” he whispered.

She nodded her head, sniffling and regaining her composure. He stayed silent for the most part, aside from the occasional murmur of encouragement and reassurance, giving her as much time as she needed to calm down.

“The… the storm came quicker than I thought,” she mumbled after a few minutes of silence, “I locked up the coop and came back inside to make some tea. I’d just finished my brew when the first clap of thunder happened. I dropped the cup and ran to go find my headphones… the noise canceling ones… I couldn’t find them, I looked everywhere… everything got so loud, the rain, the wind… I wasn’t thinking, I grabbed my blankets and I just hid. I panicked, I… I didn’t know what to do.”

Elliott gently shushed her, not to get her to stop talking, but he could hear the anxiety in her voice ramp up as she continued to speak. “You did everything you could. I know that your fears are likely greater than anything I could ever comprehend, but this storm cannot hurt you. No storm ever will again, I won’t allow it,” he assured her.

Light flashed in the background and within seconds there was another deafening clap of thunder, rattling the entire farmhouse. A cracked sob spilled from the farmer’s lips as she tucked her head down, seeking comfort in Elliott’s arms.

Gently, he placed his head atop her’s, holding her tightly in his arms. They sat there as the minutes passed, losing track of the time as the storm raged on outside. Maria gripped onto the writer’s shirt desperately, as though it were the only thing keeping her anchored to the real world.

The pair stayed like this for a long time, until finally the brunt of the storm passed. It’d tempered down to a simple downpour, no more furious winds, no more strikes of lightning, no more ground-shaking thunder.

“Maria,” Elliott murmured, rubbing her back softly, “I believe it’s over for the most part. How do you feel?”

She sniffled, lifting her head slowly so that her eyes met his, “better… thank you.”

He smiled, “there’s no need to thank me-”

“No,” she interrupted, “really. Thank you. No one’s… no one’s ever done this for me before.”

Elliott’s brow furrowed. It was impossible for him to comprehend how a brilliant soul like Maria had been shown such little compassion in her life.

“Here,” he began, “why don’t you go on and have a shower to refresh yourself, yes?”

She nodded, and soon he was on his feet helping her up off of the floor. They walked back into her bedroom where she shrugged off the blankets and tossed them onto her bed. He turned his head as she dug through her wardrobe, giving her the privacy to select clothing and undergarments before she quietly made her way into the bathroom.

As soon as the shower head sputtered to life, Elliott exited the bedroom. As the farmer showered, he planned on cleaning up, hoping that she’d have less stress as a result. He started in the kitchen, finding a broom and dustpan and sweeping all the cracked bits and pieces of ceramic that had been scattered around. In the living room he folded the couch’s throw over blanket and kneelt down to begin putting away the various items that’d been strewn about during Maria’s frantic search earlier that night.

A soft mew interrupted him once he was about halfway done, and he tilted his head to see a bright blue pair of eyes staring at him curiously from under the couch.

“Hello Orion,” he greeted the feline with a smile, “you can come on out now, the storm has passed. No need to be afraid.”

He tapped his fingers on the wooden flooring, beckoning the Burmese to come out from his hiding place. Cautiously, Orion slid out from underneath the couch, before padding over to the writer and meowing loudly, bumping his head against his arm.

“Are you searching for your mother?” he asked with a laugh, “she’s in the shower, she’ll return soon. It must have been awfully frightening seeing her so scared today, hmm? She’s far braver than she gives herself credit for though, I’m sure you can see it too.”

If that cat had understood a single word from the writer, he didn’t give any sign of it. He simply purred and plopped down on the floor as Elliott continued to clean.

Finally he moved into the bedroom, replacing the bed sheets that’d been stripped off of the mattress and sprucing the bed up, fluffing the pillows and folding the blankets nicely. Just as he grabbed the curtains which had been blown away from the window, the sound of trickling water in the shower stopped.

As soon as he’d gotten the blinds back onto the wall hooks, the bathroom door opened, clouds of hot steam billowing forth. Maria stepped out, wearing an over-sized shirt with the Zuzu University logo on it that fell down to her mid thigh. If she was wearing shorts beneath the shirt, they weren’t visible.

She used the fluffy white towel in her hands to dry her hair, before tossing it into a hamper and finally looking over at the writer. “Oh. You cleaned up?” she asked curiously, looking around the tidied bedroom, “you didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s no sweat off my back,” Elliott assured her, “would you like some tea? A glass of water?”

The farmer shook her head, “no… I just wanna sleep,” she answered quietly.

He watched as she shuffled over to her bed and pulled the covers back. _‘I’ll let her rest, it’s far too late to walk home now and the rain persists. I’ll sleep on the couch for her sake,’_ he decided, walking towards the door and lifting a hand to flick off the lights.

“Wait-”

He paused, turning to see Maria staring at him shyly from the bed, “can… can you stay here? With me… please…?”

A sad smile tugged on Elliott’s lips and he nodded. He took off his shoes and left them at the end of the bed, pulling back the covers on the other half of the mattress. The bed was large, a king size, and though there was more than enough space for both of them he noticed that the farmer had scooted over to the very edge of her half.

He undid the top two buttons of his dress shirt so it wouldn’t be too suffocating as he slept, before finally settling in under the covers and leaning against the pillows.

“I’m sorry if this is awkward…” she apologized quietly as she tugged the covers up, looking up at him shyly.

He smiled, “Maria, I don’t mind. If having someone besides you while you sleep makes you feel comfortable and safe, I’d happily do this every night.”

He was able to see the blush that dusted her cheeks as she nodded quickly, “thank you… for everything. And, goodnight.”

“Goodnight, have some blissful dreams,” he replied in a whisper.

She turned over, facing away from him, and within minutes her breathing had calmed and she’d seemingly drifted away into a peaceful sleep.

Elliott, on the other hand, was staring up at the ceiling, mind racing with various thoughts which would always circle back to the sleeping woman besides him. Eventually he was able to push these aside and fall asleep as well, a pleasant smile on his face all the while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Focused mostly on Elliott this chapter, it was actually very fun to write from his point of view. In my first edit of this chapter it was down from Maria's perspective, but with how frantic it got at some points it would've become too confusing for the reader
> 
> We're back to normal chapter lengths lol, no more 7k words- not for a while, anyways
> 
> Also! I kinda sorta have a youtube channel for my art now,,, so if anyone wants to check it out (it's mostly speedpaints, but there is an animatic too) : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXrPbh5hNOAiKb9yz75OXpQ/
> 
> As always comments and kudos are very appreciated! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter :3


	12. Autumn Follies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The damage from the storm is assessed, but luckily Maria has a helping hand throughout the day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a whileeeee,,, whoops
> 
> (I'm so sorry y'all I got busy)

Maria’s eyes fluttered open, being greeted by her dimly lit bedroom. Sticking her arm out towards the nightstand, she’d managed to find her phone despite the lack of light and flicked the screen. The numbers ‘5:52’ flashed back at her, and she hummed. ‘ _ Managed to get up before my alarm, nice,’ _ she sleepily thought.

She opened her phone momentarily to turn off the alarm so it wouldn’t blare within a matter of minutes. Just as soon as she opened her messenger to see if she’d missed anything overnight, a shuffling sound was heard behind her as the bed shifted.

Suddenly, memories of the previous night flashed through her mind. The storm, her panicked state of mind, Elliott running to aid her, and the fact that he’d spent the night after cleaning up her mess. Her face flushed red, though she couldn’t pinpoint if it was due to the embarrassment of her actions of the fact that she’d slept in the same bed as him.

She tilted her head back, only to see him still sound asleep. Though there wasn’t much light, she could see that he was still sound asleep. His hair was splayed around his head like a halo, and he’d made himself very comfortable within the mass of blankets and pillows.

As carefully as she could, she slipped out from beneath the covers and quietly padded across the bedroom, grabbing some clothes out of her dresser before entering the bathroom. After quickly washing her face and brushing her teeth, she tied her hair up and changed into a flannel button up and denim shorts.

Exiting the bathroom, she folded the clothing she’d worn to bed and set them down, before finally leaving her bedroom and gently shutting the door behind her. Orion curled up on the love seat, fast asleep, which was normal for the feline at this time of morning.

She resumed her regular routine, turning on her coffee maker and letting the brew prepare itself as she flicked on the television to tune into the early morning news. A pair of bleary eyed local reporters spoke about various stories as the farmer bounced around her kitchen, making toast and two fried eggs.

Once her coffee was ready, she leaned against her counter and ate a makeshift breakfast sandwich, sipping on her caffeinated pick-me-up as the sun began to slowly rise outside the window. As she chewed away she made a mental checklist of all she’d have to do today; buy all her new crops from Pierre, de-weed the field she’d measured out for planting, pick up a pick-axe upgrade from Clint, and if she had the time she’d swing by Robin’s to discuss whether or not the carpenter could visit the farm and examine the old cattle barn and see if it could be rebuilt (though she very much doubted she’d be able to fit in the last one).

Once she was done with her mini-meal, she chugged the last of her coffee before depositing her plate and mug in the sink and turning off the television before finally stepping outside to greet both a new day and season.

It was only when she stood on her porch, basking in the first rays of sunshine, that she realized the carnage that last night’s freak storm had left behind. 

A handful of trees had been knocked over due to the strong winds, leaves and grass were scattered across the ground as far as the eye could see, and there was a hole in the roof of the coop where some of the shingles had been knocked out of place.

“... shit,” she muttered, biting down on her lip nervously.

The coop would have to be dealt with first, and she’d have to put in place some kind of makeshift solution until she could have Robin properly patch it up. After spending a few minutes digging through the shed besides the farmhouse, she found an old blue tarp that luckily wasn’t tattered. 

Grabbing a ladder, she trudged over to the side of the coop and set it up, climbing up on top of the roof and peaking inside. Luckily the damage within the coop itself was minimal, her biggest concern would likely be water damage to the wooden floorboards.

She then spread the tarp out, making sure it covered the exposed area before hammering it in. It wasn’t the best job, she was by no means a builder in any way, but it would have to do for now.

Climbing back down the ladder, she stored it away in the shed once more before rolling up her sleeves and turning to face the field. It was grueling work, clearing all the land she’d spent so much time prepping the day before, chopping up the fallen trees, and pulling up the invading weeds.

Two hours passed before she was finally done, she was drenched in sweat and the sun had begun it’s journey across the sky.  _ ‘At this rate I’m never going to get everything done,’ _ she grumbled to herself as she glanced over at the coop,  _ ‘I haven’t even checked on my girls yet.’ _

Trudging up the steps of her porch, she kicked off her muddy boots and wiped her brow with the back of her hand before stumbling into the house. She was greeted by cooling air conditioning and happily accepted it, and was also met by a meowing Orion pacing across the floor to brush against her legs.

“Hi, bud,” she said with a smile, patting the top of his head before she made her way towards her bedroom. 

_ ‘I gotta switch shirts,’  _ she thought to herself as she turned the doorknob,  _ ‘no way in Hell I can keep this thing on for the rest of today-’ _

Her train of thought stopped as she pushed the door open and was met by a rather interesting sight.

Elliott stood shirtless in the doorway of her bathroom, dressed only in his trousers as he towel-dried his long, auburn hair. His eyes flicked up and met her own, and a deep blush dusted his cheeks mimicking her own.

“M-morning,” she stammered out, averting her eyes and finding sudden interest in the floor.

“Yes, good morning to you as well,” Elliott from chuckled across the room, “apologies for my lack of dress, and I did borrow your shower so I hope that’s not too much of a hassle.”

“No, not at all!” she quickly shook her head, “after what you did last night you’re more than welcome to help yourself to anything in my home. I um- I have a pot of coffee in the kitchen, should still be warm.”

There was a rustling of fabric, and when Maria finally glanced up once more the writer had just finished buttoning up his shirt, “I’ll be sure to help myself to it. I’m assuming you’ve been wide awake for quite some time doing farm work, yes?”

The farmer groaned and nodded her head, leaning against the wall as her shoulders sagged, “ugh, yes, I’ve been awake since six just cleaning up ‘cause that storm made a mess of my land. I’m so behind, I still have to till the land and then go into town and buy seeds, I won’t be done with any of that until sunset if I’m lucky, and then I’ll still have to water everything I’ve planted, and that’s not even mentioning I still have to go see Clint to pick up one of my tools that he’s upgraded.”

Elliott was quiet for a moment, before tapping his chin and speaking up, “if you’d like, I can see Pierre and purchase all your seeds for you while you prepare the land.”

Maria’s head shot up at this. “Really? You’d do that for me?”

The writer laughed softly, “of course I would.”

“Yoba, that would be a massive help,” she sighed with relief.

Dashing into the living room, she grabbed a notepad and scribbled down the names of various Fall seeds; pumpkin, eggplant, yam, bok choy, grape, cranberry, and amaranth. Each seed name had a number of packets besides it. Once she’d written everything down she grabbed her wallet and set aside a sizable amount of gold in a coin purse, before handing both the bag and piece of paper to Elliott.

“I know it’s a lot, but Pierre’s been expecting this order for weeks so don’t worry. You can just give him the list and he’ll be able to get everything ready for you to bring here,” she explained with a smile, “and thank you so so much for doing this.”

“You’re very welcome,” Elliott smiled, “I’ll be sure to complete this task as quickly as humanly possible.”

After exchanging goodbyes, the writer had set off, and Maria only allowed herself a few more minutes of downtime before heading back out to the field again. She meticulously re-tilled every single row that she’d planned out the day before, being sure to keep each row straight and even. She’d til two long rows for each seed type she was planning on planting, meaning fourteen rows in total. 

Luck was on her side for once, and she’d manage to finish the very last row just as the writer returned to the farm with many bags in hand. She took off her thick gloves and pushed back the flyaway strands of hair that hung over her face as she sprinted over.

“Oh, this is lovely!” she beamed, looking through each of the bags and tallying up the seed totals, “perfect, I’ll start planting these soon. First though, I’ve gotta check on the girls.”

“The girls?” Elliott asked curiously.

The farmer giggled, “you’ve never met them have you? C’mon, follow me.”

She led him around towards the coop and as soon as she pushed the door open they were greeted by loud chirping and squawking. 

“Ohhhh…. The girls.” Elliott chuckled as one of the chickens hopped up and ran to peck his shoes curiously.

“That one at your feet is Cygnus, she’s quite the handful,” Maria explained with a grin, “her sister Corvus is resting in her nest box over there. The new chicks are Aquila and Columba, they’re eating at the food trough, and I’ve got two ducklings hidden around here somewhere, their names are Apus and Grus.”

“A constellation naming convention?” the writer smiled softly, “how very  _ you _ .”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” she asked in faux surprise, sticking her tongue out at him.

“I simply find it rather endearing. Your love of the night sky and the wonders of space is so endless that you’d even name your farm animals after the infinite amount of sparkling stars in the sky. It’s rather cute,” he explained, looking down at her with a grin.

She flushed, her cheeks suddenly feeling quite hot at this compliment, “oh hush. I’ll meet you back at the farmhouse, I’ve got more chores for you. I just have to clean up here and put more feed in their trough.”

He laughed sweetly before walking out of the coop, and Maria took a few minutes to scrub and sweep the floors, clean and refill the food trough, and clean the waterer thoroughly so that the chicks and ducklings could have clean water to drink.

Once she’d checked on each of the girls and collected the two eggs left by Cygnus and Corvus, she was heading back towards the farmhouse.

Eliott sat on the porch steps, sipping a glass of ice water and aimlessly watching the few clouds in the sky drift by. Just as soon as Maria set her foot on the bottom step, however, a loud growling erupted from the pit of her stomach.

She blushed and laughed, a tad embarrassed, “guess that’s a good cue to get started on some lunch, even if it is a bit late. How does crab cakes sound?”

Elliott’s green eyes lit up at his, “it sounds absolutely delicious.”

The pair walked back into the house, basking in the air conditioning before Maria ducked into the kitchen to search for ingredients. She pulled out some wrapped crab meat which she’d caught and stored away just a few days ago, a bag of wheat flour, some eggs, oil, and various seasonings.

“Do you require any assistance? I’d be more than happy to help, though I must admit it’s been some time since I’ve cooked in a proper kitchen,” Elliott offered with a smile leaning against the counter as she set up everything she’d need.

The farmer grinned at him, “you can help me mix together a seasoning as the crab meat defrosts, and while you do that I’ll get the breading ready.”

The two began to work together rather flawlessly. Elliott mixed together a seasoning which consisted of salt, pepper, various herbs and parsley, while Maria broke bits of toasted bread and mixed in lemon juice and dijon mustard to make sure the breading would stick to the crab meat.

Once the meat was ready Maria cut it into smaller pieces, then she and the writer would take turns putting together the meat, breading, and seasonings and molding them into small cakes that would fit on a baking tray. Then, the farmer brushed the cakes in melted butter before finally popping the tray into the oven with a satisfied smile.

“Those should take about 15 minutes, in the meantime I can prep something else for us? Roasted potatoes, a salad, corn on the cob- your choice,” she offered.

“A salad sounds lovely,” Elliott replied with a soft look, “would you like me to-”

“Ohhh, no no no, you’ve helped plenty,” Maria interrupted, shaking her head, “you’re my guest now, go get comfy in the living room and I’ll bring you a plate once the food’s ready.”

He opened his mouth to protest but the farmer pressed her finger to his lips and raised an eyebrow, stopping him in his tracks.

A blush dusted his cheeks but he finally nodded his head and walked out of the kitchen, leaving Maria to finish up the last of the meal preparation. She put together a makeshift salad with various greens, some cheese she’d bought from Marnie, oil, and cut-up toasted bread to serve as homemade croutons.

She plated both the salads and let the crab cakes finish baking before pulling out the tray and shutting off the oven. “What do you want to drink?” she asked aloud as the cakes began to cool, “I’ve got plenty different juices, lemonade, water, and even wine, though it may be too early for that last one.”

“Lemonade sounds lovely,” he replied, and Maria nodded as she pulled a mason jar from the fridge of lemonade she’d squeezed the previous week. 

She poured two glasses before finally taking the crab cakes and putting them on the plates besides the salads. Then, with the skills she’d retained from her few months working as a waitress in high school, she carried both plates and both glasses of lemonade out to the living room. 

“Here you go,” she said with a smile, handing Elliott his drink and food, “ _ buen provecho _ .”

“I’m assuming that’s Spanish?” he asked curiously, setting his glass down on the coffee table.

“Yup!” she replied with a cheeky smile, sitting down on the love seat besides him, “it’s sort of like the phrase  _ bon appetit _ in French, but there’s no real direct translation to English. I’m pretty much just saying ‘enjoy your meal’.”

“And how would one typically reply in Spanish to being told this?” the writer inquired.

“ _ Equal _ , which is spelt the same as equal and it essentially saying ‘same’,” she explained as she sipped her lemonade.

“Well then,  **_e_ ** _ -qual” _ Elliott said with confidence, making Maria giggle.

“Nice effort, but you stressed the e too much. Spanish is all about letting the syllables flow, whenever I speak it I sort of have a rhythm to everything I say, it helps me pace my sentences. My family speaks it much faster than I tend to, it’s very rapid fire and if you’re not fluent you will never understand what they’re saying,” she sighed, “but, the attempt _ was  _ cute.”

“I suppose it is still a positive that you found it cute,” the writer chuckled, lifting one of the crab cakes to his mouth to finally get a taste. He bit into it and his eyes went wide, a satisfied hum spilled out of him as he ate, “Maria this is delicious- Yoba, where is this recipe from?

She giggled sweetly, “my grandmother taught it to me when I was younger, I use this seasoning on crab or lobster I eat, it’s the family secret,” she replied, biting into her own crab cake.

“You’ve… taught me your family’s recipe?” he asked sincerely.

Maria nodded, blushing slightly, “well, yeah… I’d like to think we’re pretty... close?”

When she glanced back over at Elliott, she was surprised to see him looking back at her intently. Their eyes met and she felt her cheeks flush once more. Her gaze flicked down to his lips momentarily, and she could’ve sworn that he did the same to her. Before either could say any more, however, the sound of a ringing phone cut through the tension.

She shut her eyes and cursed beneath her breath, “shit… sorry, let me go see who that is.”

Quickly setting her plate down, she scrambled off of the couch to save herself from any more embarrassment and dashed into her bedroom to find her phone. It was on her nightstand, where she’d left it that morning, and her sister’s name flashed on the screen repeatedly.

Maria pursed her lips. She hadn’t quite forgiven Camila for the comments she’d made on the farmer’s birthday. She felt guilty ignoring her family at times, but every single time they tried to insert themselves in her life now that she was away it never ended well for her.

She stared at the phone a few seconds more, letting it ring once, then twice, and then it was quiet. The notification of a ‘missed call’ was now on her screen, and she simply shut the phone off and walked back into the living room, avoiding the mess that would be family confrontation for now.

“Telemarketer,” Maria sighed with a weak laugh once she sat down beside Elliott once more, mostly wanting to avoid any questioning, “Anyways once we’re done here, I’m gonna have to start planting all those seeds.”

The writer, who at this point was halfway done with his plate, glanced over at her curiously, “would you be requiring any help with that as well?”

“I know I said I had chores for you earlier, but I’d hate to keep making you work more,” the farmer replied.

“Nonsense!” Elliott quickly retorted, “you know for a fact I’m more than happy to spend time with you and aid in your farming endeavors. Besides, if you’re not putting me to use here on your farm, I’d likely be spending the rest of my day reading aimlessly within the confines of the museum.”

Maria blushed, flattered by his persistence as she hid her face to take a sip of lemonade, “alright fine… I guess I do need help watering once all the rows are planted.”

He nodded, “excellent, it shall be my repayment for this wonderful lunch.”

“Elliott you don’t have to repay me for any-”

“You’ve done plenty for me in the past, dearest. Allow me this one courtesy? Please?” he insisted, looking over at her with the sincerest gaze she’d ever seen.

There it was again- the nickname dearest. She had to admit, hearing it had quite a positive effect on her.  _ ‘It’s almost like… butterflies in my stomach, but gah I sound like some lovesick middle schooler thinking that,’ _ she mused in her mind, well aware of the deep blush tinting her cheeks,  _ ‘this man is going to be the death of me.’ _

* * *

Hours had passed, and the sun was beginning it’s descent into the horizon line. With Elliott’s help the farmer had gotten all her new seeds planted and watered properly, as well as the corn stalks (which had luckily survived the storm).

Maria had set aside the task of retrieving her pick-axe until the next day, knowing full well Clint would’ve closed the blacksmith shop by now. She could use the opportunity of her leaving the farm to see Robin as well, though, and talk to the carpenter about fixing the coop and renovations for the barn.

The setting of the sun allowed some of the cooler night air to settle into the valley. Autumn would be in full swing soon, and the farm was excitedly anticipating the crisp air and colorful trees which would be arriving eventually.

She’d found a pair of lawn chairs from the shed, likely the ones her grandparents would use to leisure, and set them up on the porch so she and Elliott could relax after a day of hard work. Maria had popped into the bathroom for a quick shower, scrubbing off all the grime and dirt and mud that’d built up during the day. 

Once she was out, the writer would be doing the same (he’d severely underestimated the amount of strength and muscle needed to lug around a metal watering can filled to the brim). While he was there, Maria decided to dig around in her kitchen and grab a bottle of wine and the two nicest glasses she owned. They weren’t matching, but they’d do for now.

Walking outside, she set the wine and glasses down on a small garden table besides the chairs, and scrolled through her phone to find some ambient music she could play. It didn’t take too long for Elliott to find her on the porch, notably with his hair tied up in a loose bun.

“What’s all this?” he asked with a small grin.

Maria shrugged her shoulders innocently, taking a seat in one of the chairs, “you worked hard today, I thought it’d be nice to just chill for a bit. I’ve got wine that Robin gifted me on my birthday, never had a good opportunity to crack it open til now.”

Elliott chuckled, sitting in the chair besides hers, “Wine, music, and a beautiful sunset. Dare I say, it feels rather romantic, does it not?”

Her eyes widened upon hearing this. She hadn’t realized, but now that he’d pointed it out it made far too much sense. Nervously, she cleared her throat and laughed as she popped the bottle open, “hah, oh, I didn’t even realize. Makes it a little awkward huh?”

“It by no means needs to be,” Elliott replied as she poured the rosy pink drink, “it can simply be a platonic drinking session between friends.”

“Yeah… friends,” she murmured, the word tasting bitter on her tongue. She shook the thought from her mind though, “you did really good today though. I know I’ve told you before, but if you ever gave up the writing gig I could use a farmhand. I’d even pay for Robin to build a separate cabin just for you.”

The writer hummed, lifting the wineglass to his lips, “I’ll admit, the first time I heard that proposition I did put some serious thought into it. Now with a book deal in the works, I will have to decline once more. Farm life does have quite the charm to it however, but I’m afraid I’ll need a much more compelling reason to dedicate myself to it, rather than just the prospect of fulfilling work.”

Maria gazed up at him curiously, “what would you consider a compelling reason?”

She watched as he pursed his lips, taking a sip of his wine before setting the glass down, “well, this could be varying things, both on the negative and positive ends of the spectrum. In a negative sense, situations such as the threat of poverty or even damage to my own home could be what pushes me to accept your offer, though I’d prefer not to think about either of these occurring for my own sake. In a positive sense, though, I suppose… no, it’s silly.”

The farmer’s interest was piqued, and she leaned over the arm of her chair, “nooo, c’mon tell me, you can’t leave me hanging like this.”

Elliott shook his head gently, and she noticed a faint blush tinging his face, “it’s a ridiculous scenario, I’ve no clue why I even thought it up in the first place.”

“Elliott pleaseeeeee,” she begged, “you know I’m way too curious, I’m just gonna keep buggin’ you about it.”

He chuckled softly open hearing this and sighed, swirling his finger around the rim of the wineglass, “alright, fine, but this is only so you won’t pester me from here on out. The main reason for me moving onto land such as this… would be if I were to engage in a relationship with the owner of said land.”

Maria sat back upon hearing this, “you mean… like you’d have to be dating the farmer?”

He turned away, looking towards the fading sun in the distance, “I suppose so yes. Dating, marriage, elopement, other situations along those lines.”

“Ah,” she murmured, putting the glass up to her lips, “y’know, if a relatively attractive author were to stumble into my life, I’d have no qualms about entering into a theoretical relationship with them.”

Elliott choked on his wine, making the farmer giggle. He quickly cleared his throat, “I- I am not a published author yet.”

“It was a hypothetical scenario, you only  _ assumed _ I was talking about you,” Maria retorted, giving him a sly look over the rim of her wine glass.

“... touché,’ the writer said under his breath, glancing over at her, “and I do suppose that if a rather attractive, kind, charming farmer were to wander into my own life, I too would have no qualms in courting them. In fact, it would bring me utmost pleasure to sweep this hypothetical farmer off their feet and be graced with their companionship even if only to see their lovely smile everyday.”

Maria blushed listening to his explanation, “ah... hypothetically speaking yes?”

“Yes,” Elliott confirmed, tipping his glass in her direction momentarily, “though the wonderful thing about hypothetical scenarios is that if one were to put the work in they could live out those thought-up situations in real life.”

“Meaning I could date this hypothetical published author?” she murmured softly.

“And I could court this hypothetical farmer,” he replied in turn.

Their gaze met. The farmer lifted the glass to her lips once more and nursed it shyly, never wanting to look away from his green eyes. He stared back as well, and she couldn’t help notice the way he ghosted his lips against the rim of the wineglass in a way which was oh-so enticing to that little voice in the back of her mind.

However, just out of the corner of her eye, a twinkling light momentarily distracted her.

Confused, she turned to look towards the source- the night sky. The sun had bid it’s goodbye and indigo painted the heavens. However, very faintly, streaks of white were fading in and out, dashing across the cloudless sky.

It captured the attention of both her and the writer, the pair stared until the farmer suddenly gasped, “a meteor shower- oh my Yoba! I didn’t even know-”

She set her glass down and stepped inside of the farmhouse momentarily, flicking the switch which controlled the porch lights. The outdoor lights were shut off, making it so the exterior of the farmhouse was bathed in darkness.

Walking back outside, she shut the door gently before looking back over to Elliott, “sorry about the lights, it’s just easier to see up there without the light down here,” she apologized gently.

The writer smiled, “no need to worry dearest, you’ll hear no complaints from me.”

There it was again.  _ Dearest _ . ‘ _ He’s going to drive me insane with that,’ _ she thought with a mutter, stepping onto the porch steps to get a better look.

Without the distraction of artificial lighting, it was far easier to see the glittering night. Twinkling stars decorated the sky, some brighter and some dimmer, forming various shapes and constellations. Every few seconds there’d be a streak of light- a shooting star dashing across the sky, soon to be joined by dozens of others.

She felt the floorboards shift beneath, and didn’t have to look over to realize Elliott had also stood up and moved to stand beside her to watch the falling stars as well.

“It’s gorgeous isn’t it?” she asked in a quiet voice, never tearing her eyes away from the light show.

“Yes… you are,” he replied, just as quiet.

This shocked the farmer momentarily, and she laughed a bit, “p-pardon?”

Out of the corner of her eye she could see him fluster, he hadn’t even realized his slip of the tongue. “I- I mean yes, they are, q-quite gorgeous indeed.”

Maria giggled, glancing over at him for just a moment to catch him staring back. She cleared her throat nervously, her face warming up which was now an all too familiar feeling. She forced herself to gaze back up at the sky, pointing at the newest shooting star to flicker into view, “they’re not even stars, y’know. I can’t tell you how upset I was as a kid when I learned it wasn’t actually stars falling from the sky and landing on Earth. They’re meteoroids, chunks of space rock entering the atmosphere and burning up as they do,” she explained with a smile, “there’s a few meteor showers that we should see annually but a random one like this… well this is rare.”

“It must be a rather special night then,” he sighed beside her, and she could feel the way his hand ghosted past her’s, their fingers just barely touching.

“Very special, yea,” she whispered, moving her hand ever so slightly. She felt her pinky finger dance across his own, and she bit down on her lip somewhat nervously, wondering if he’d notice the subtle advancement.

Her heart was hammering in her chest. She didn’t even know what she was doing at this point- she’d essentially been flirting with him all day, they’d even shared a bed together, but just the thought of their hands touching was what made her heart race now.  _ ‘I should quit while I’m ahead, I doubt he’s even interested, he’s just been kind to me all day and I’m probably reading the signs all wrong-’ _

Her train of thought halted as soon as she felt his fingers interlock with her own. Her heart skipped a beat, and she gingerly flexed her fingers so that she held his hand in her own. 

Ever so slowly, she turned her head to the side to finally look at him. She couldn’t focus, she was torn between staring into his eyes, gazing longingly at his lips, or looking to the ground shyly.

She could barely stop the gasp that spilled past her own lips when she felt his other hand beneath her chin, gently tilting her head closer to his own. “Do stop me if I make you uncomfortable in anyw-” he began, only to be interrupted. 

“Yoba, Elliott, please just kiss me,” she begged, her voice wavering.

He leaned down, and in turn she leaned up, narrowing the gap between them. Her free hand gripped onto his shirt in a desperate manner, similar to the way it had done the night before. But the context for grasp now was different, far more positive, far more… comforting.

The space between them lessened more and more, until their lips were just barely touching, softly brushing against one another. She hesitated, and he sensed it, moving his hand beneath her chin so that his fingers trailed along her jaw line, tracing further and further until he gently held the back of her neck.

Maria had goosebumps, shivering as she got used to the feeling of his hand on her. Gingerly, she stood up on her tiptoes, sealing the gap entirely and pressing her lips to his. It was soft, neither wanting to overstep a boundary with the other, but she could feel the nerves beneath her skin shooting off like fireworks.

It lasted only a few moments, and the farmer hadn’t even realized that she’d let her eyes flutter shut until she opened them once more to look up at him. 

Neither said a word, but they understood completely. It was a matter of seconds before they were lip-locked yet again, the farmer’s arms snaking up to wrap around his neck as he gently settled his other hand on her waist.

For once in her life Maria found someone who could distract her from even the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooooooo boy this chapter took way longer to finish than anticipated. School + youtube stuff got ahead of me
> 
> Anyways! Yay! They kiss! Finally!
> 
> In other news I've rewatched the entirety of Avatar: The Last Airbender and it has rekindled my childhood crush on Zuko and now I really really really wanna write a fic for him, but I know I probably shouldn't start it now cause I'll never be able to balance two fics at once lol. Lemme know your thoughts tho
> 
> As always: Comments and kudos are veryyy appreciated. Dunno when the next chapter will be but I'll get it done ASAP!!


	13. The Start of Something New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maria and Elliott have fully realized their feelings for one another... what happens now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a whileeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
> 
> College kicked my ass :p
> 
> Here's some cute stuff tho :3

There was a stumbling of movement, and somehow the pair had managed to step back onto the porch and lean against the house as their kisses continued. Any rational thoughts which Maria might normally posses were chucked straight out the window as she desperately clung onto Elliott, never once wanting to let go. 

A slightly stifled squeal managed to escape her when she felt one of his hands press into her waist and push her against the wall. He faltered, pulling back momentarily and looking down at the farmer with a furrowed brow.

“Are you alright? I meant no harm,” he murmured, their lips mere inches apart still.

She quickly shook her head, “no no, it’s okay. I’m okay, you just caught me off guard is all,” she replied in a whispered tone, her eyes flicking up to meet his own.

His gaze bore genuine concern, and Maria was more than charmed by this as a small smile quirked on her lips. “Are… you scared of hurting me?” she asked curiously, tilting her head one way as she spoke.

“More than anything,” he answered, “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I harmed you, even if only an accident.”

She giggles, leaning back up so that their lips just barely brush against one another’s “that’s sweet, though I don’t think I’m nearly as fragile as you may think I am. I’ll let you know if you need to slow down.”

There’s a flash of mischief in Elliott’s eyes as he leans back in, sealing their lips with a kiss once more as both his hands move to her waist to press her firmly against the wall of the house. Maria ran her fingers through his hair, loosening the bun, as she deepened the kiss, and likely would’ve continued if it weren’t for the loud mewling sound that interrupted them.

Pulling her head back, the farmer blinked with confusion as she peered around the writer, and was greeted by the sight of a very annoyed looking Burmese cat.

“I don’t think Orion is pleased by our… display of affection,” Elliott murmured with an amused smile.

“Agreed,” she giggles.

The pair look at each other once more, before slowly pulling their arms back. Maria clears her throat nervously, brushing away some of her hair and finally realizing how red-hot her face must be. 

“Well that was… something,” she whispers.

“Indeed,” he replies, and though there’s little light she can tell that his cheeks are a bright red, “apologies for distracting you from the light show, dearest.”

The farmer rolls her eyes. “Shut up,” she says with a laugh, “I’ll take kissing you over a meteor shower any day.”

“Is that so?” the writer replies with a smug grin.

“Hey, don’t get cocky,” she shoots back.

“Don’t get cocky?” he quickly gasps, splaying a hand over his chest, “I just had the honor of kissing the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever laid eyes upon, and you’re telling me to  _ not _ be cocky?”

If the blush on Maria’s face could deepen anymore, it did, and she attempts to brush his comment aside with a roll of her eyes. “... so. What exactly does this mean? For us… I mean.”

“Well, I would… understand if this were an incident you may want to push aside and forget as to not disrupt our friendship,” he begins in a cautious tone, but upon seeing the crestfallen look on her face he switches gears, “however, I would be lying if I were to say that I did not want to do that  _ much _ more often. If you were to grant me the ability to be able to do so, it would make me so incredibly happy.”

“Is this your roundabout way of saying you’d like to kiss me more?” the farmer asks with a smirk.

Elliott’s lips quirk up into a smile and he turns to look back up towards the sky, the moon and stars casting a soft glow over him. “Perhaps,” he murmurs, “perhaps it’s also a roundabout way of me saying I’d like to do even more than just kiss you, dearest.”

Maria’s eyes go slightly wide at hearing this, her mind immediately jumping to the lewdest assumption of his words. Clearly the writer notices when he glances back to look at her, cause he stammers and stumbles to clarify.

“I-I mean that in the sense of, well, wanting to further our relationship-” he quickly elaborates, and Maria giggles at the way he nervously stutters, “in an emotional sense, though- I… I do suppose if you would want to further our relationship in a  _ physical _ sense I also… would not mind? Oh dear, what am I even saying-”

Mercifully, the farmer leans forward and places a finger over his lips, effectively quieting him. “You’re cute when you’re nervous,” she laughs, “but I get what you’re trying to say. Maybe… let’s both take like a day to think things over, y’know? See how we’re feeling when we’re not all caught up in… the moment. That’s not at all to say that I  _ don’t _ want to continue, cause trust me, I do, I just need a little bit of time to process.”

She pulls her hand back as Elliott nods, “I understand, dearest. It was rather sudden, wasn’t it?”

“Just a bit,” she replies with a giggle, “I didn’t mind one bit though. It was nice.”

“Merely nice?” the writer responds with a small smirk.

Maria rolls her eyes, “ _ more _ than nice,” she continues, poking him in the chest playfully.

“Then perhaps,” he murmurs, turning to look back at her, “we could continue?”

He leans down, bringing his face closer to hers once more, and just as their lips begin to brush against one another’s again- she presses her hand against his chest, stopping him.

“Not so fast, Romeo,” she giggles, “it’s getting late. I need to wake up early for farm work, and you’ve gotta get home safe.”

Elliott pulls back a few inches, smiling and just barely hiding a small look of disappointment, “understood, I would never want to push you.”

“Good,” Maria grins, “thanks for your help today, by the way. I would be  _ very _ behind if I didn’t have you here. And… thanks again for last night, I needed someone to be there with me.”

“Of course. Any time, dearest,” he nods. In a swift motion, he gently grasps the hand she’d put against his chest and lifts it up to his mouth, pressing a soft kiss to the back of her palm.

For the next few minutes, Maria helps Elliott collect the few belongings he’d brought along, and soon the farmer is walking him to the entrance of the farm. 

“I’ll pay you a visit tomorrow once I do a couple chores,” she says once they stop by the signpost, “we can talk about this more then.”

“I look forward to this visit,” Elliott smiles softly.

Maria grins, before leaning up and pressing a soft, quick kiss to his lips. “Good night, Elliott,” she murmurs and she pulls back.

“Good night, and have the sweetest of dreams Maria,” he replies, brushing one of her curly locks behind her ear.

The two wave and bid each other goodbye, and soon she’s watching the writer walk down the dirt path. There’s a smile on her lips that can’t seem to fade as she turns around and walks back to the farmhouse.

She allows herself a few more minutes to watch the occasional shooting star that streaks across the sky, before packing up the lawn chairs and wine glasses she’d brought outside. With a yawn, she tells Orion goodnight before changing into an oversized shirt and crawling into bed.

Her dreams that night are filled with visions of a certain auburn-haired writer. And she couldn’t be any happier.

* * *

The next morning Maria is stirred awake by the blaring of her phone alarm. Grumbling, she shoves the bed covers off of her and grasps her phone, tapping the screen until the noise stops. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she pads across her bedroom and does her typical morning routine- brushing her teeth, changing her clothes, tying up her hair, and once she walks into the living room she’s greeted by Orion- who’s surprisingly awake at this early hour.

“Hey there little buddy,” she murmured, patting the top of his head, “hope you didn’t mind our guest being around for so long yesterday.”

The feline meows loudly in response.

“Well, you better get used to his presence. I have a feeling that Elliott’s gonna be hanging around the farm a lot more often from now on.” she grins, walking into the kitchen.

Once her coffee machine’s been set to brew, she slices up some bread and toasts it while absentmindedly watching the morning programming on the television; some kind of fortune teller making wildcard predictions for the day.

“... knowledge from the future! The spirits are very happy today! They will do their best to shower everyone with good fortune…”

Maria rolls her eyes at this, turning the tv off to focus on her breakfast.

Once the toast has been eaten and the coffee poured into a mug, she sips happily from it as she walks out onto the porch, surprised to see her mailbox shut. “Something must’ve been delivered,” she thinks out loud, taking another sip as she walks down the porch and peers into the mail.

Reaching inside, she pulls out a plain envelope addressed to her and from-

“Pierre?” she mumbles, setting her mug down on top of the mailbox and ripping open the envelope, “what’s he sending me mail about this time? Another notice about fertilizers? I told him I could make my own.”

Pulling out the letter, she unfolds the paper and skims across the words.

_ ‘Farmer Marie,  _

_ It seems like you’re starting to get close with some of the townspeople. If you want to show someone that you’re romantically interested you’ve got to give them one of my beautiful flower bouquets. I’m selling them now, for a very fair price! If you want to start a family someday, this is the first step! _

_ -Pierre’ _

Maria stares at the letter, eyes wide.  _ ‘This has to be some kind of crazy coincidence,’ _ she thinks, folding the paper and pursing her lips,  _ ‘maybe that fortune teller had a point… I guess I can swing by Pierre’s after seeing Clint and Robin.’ _

But first, there were chores around the farm to get done.

She waters all her crops, visits and feeds the chickens, mends a few fences, takes the maple syrup from her tapped trees and stores it in the hopes of building some bee houses before the end of autumn. Once finished, she quickly washes up and grabs her coin purse with her sight’s set on the Blacksmith as her first stop of the day.

During her walk through town, she notices a few new messages posted on the notice board outside of Pierre’s shop. A flyer about the Stardew Valley Fair which will be taking place halfway through the season, a few requests from the folk around town for various items, and some new important dates marked on the calendar. 

One specific day catches Maria’s eye, however, and that’s the fact that Elliott’s birthday is coming up very quickly.

“This Friday…” the farmer murmurs to herself, a smile quirking onto her lips, “good to know.”

As she continues to walk towards Clint’s, a small plan of action starts to formulate in her mind on how to celebrate, though she’ll definitely be having to make a few calls in advance.

* * *

“So, you’re saying you want me to check out that old building on the west side of the farmland?”

“Mhmm, that used to be where my grandad kept the cattle. I can pay the price of a building that’s entirely new, plus I’ll give you all the supplies needed,” Maria nods.

Robin hums, tapping the table with her fingers, “I can check out the building tomorrow, definitely. It’s been quite some years since being abandoned though, and unmaintained old wood doesn’t exactly remain structurally sound unless built with a lot of support. I wasn’t living in the valley when your grandfather still ran the farm though, so I’ll have to take a look at that myself. If the barn still holds up, I can use the skeleton of the building to build up a new one. If it’s  _ not _ structurally sound though, I’ll have to tear the entire thing down and build it up from the ground up.”

“And if that’s the case, I’ll pay extra,” the farmer replies, putting down her coin purse on the table, “take whatever you need from here and I’ll leave the wood and stone outside the old barn for when you get there tomorrow.”

The carpenter counts six thousand gold and stows it away behind the counter before handing the purse back to Maria. “I’ll be there first thing in the morning. You’re doing great with the farm, by the way, and I haven’t seen so much fresh produce in Pierre’s shop in  _ years _ . You’re doing a lot of good for the community, y’know?”

The farmer blushes as she pockets the rest of her gold, “ah, thanks. I really appreciate that, I’m just doing what I can. Making a living, y’know?”

“‘Course,” Robin grins.

The two women bid each other goodbye, and Maria decides to make a quick detour to her farm to drop off her pick-axe- and clean herself up. For what she planned on doing next, she needed to look more presentable than her typical muddied-farmer look.

After a brisk shower she tugs on one of her nicer shirts and a pair of denim shorts. The cool autumn air hadn’t quite set in yet, so she could get away with showing a bit of skin for now. Deciding to let her hair down, she calms her nerves and grabs her purse before heading to Pierre’s.

* * *

She manages to run into the store just minutes before closing. Pierre perks up from behind the register, smiling when he sees her.

“Hey there, farmer, need to buy more seeds?” he greets her happily, “you got here just in time, I was just emptying the till.”

“Eh, I’m not exactly here to buy  _ seeds _ … I uh, got that letter from you this morning. About the newest item in stock,” she explains, scratching the back of her neck nervously.

A knowing look crosses over Pierre’s face and he grins, “Oh, you’re here for a bouquet, are you?”

“Yeah,” Maria laughs nervously, “thought it’d be nice to keep on hand.”

“Bouquets are a tradition here in the valley. We have all sorts of little traditions, I don’t know how many your grandfather told you about. Young couples will start relationships when one of them gifts the other a bouquet, sorta like how people get engaged with rings but on a smaller scale. That’s how Caroline and I got together all those years ago,” he explains.

The farmer watches as he looks below the counter once more, and she hears the rustling of fabric and plastic before he pops back up, with a beautiful bouquet of flowers in his hand. A pink fairy rose, orange poppies, and puffs of blue jazz gathered together with their stems wrapped in yellow fabric, all tied up with a blue bow.

“It’s beautiful,” Maria gasps, walking up to the counter and taking the flowers into her own hands, “it’ll be perfect.”

She sets her coin purse down on the counter for Pierre to count two hundred gold. “So, your interest in bouquets, this wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that Elliott was the one who collected your order of seeds yesterday, would it?”

The farmer goes wide eyed, before giggling, “perhaps, but I won’t confirm anything yet because I know how fast gossip spreads in this little town.”

“It’s already begun to spread,” the shop keep chuckles, handing the purse back, “Caroline’s been theorizing about Elliott and you like crazy since the flower dance, and her popping in on your behalf added fuel to the fire. I’m sure it was the only thing she and Jodi spoke about in their little gossip circle they do in town.”

“Good to know,” Maria sighs with a roll of her eyes, “I’ll see you around Pierre, expect me to pop back in next week once my first harvest of bok choy is ready.”

“See you around Maria,” he replies, returning to counting the gold in the register.

She pockets her purse and steps outside of the shop, shutting the door behind her and taking in a deep sigh. Glancing down at the bouquet in her hands, a smile smile graces her lips before she looks towards the bridge in the southern part of town.

* * *

The scent of sea salt fills the air as Maria walks across the southern bridge and feels the dirt turn to sand beneath her feet. For a moment she’s reminded of the first time she came to this beach in the spring.

There’s a pleasant breeze rolling in from the ocean, blowing her curls around. She only has to take a few more steps before the shoreline comes into view, along with the docks and Willy’s shop and-

Elliott.

He’s standing at the shore’s edge, peacefully looking out at the deep blue waters.

Maria feels her heart skip a beat, and her grip on the bouquet tightens. “No time like the present,” she whispers to herself, steeling her nerves before walking towards the writer.

Hiding the flowers behind her back, she approaches him as quietly as possible, though the sound of crunching sand beneath her feet gives her away.

The writer perks up, tossing a glance over his shoulder. When his green eyes meet her own, a bright grin spreads across his face.

“Hello, dearest,” he greets her with a smile, “I trust the day has treated you well?”

“Oh yeah,” the farmer nods, making an effort to keep the flowers hidden behind her, “got my pick, spoke with Robin about the barn, farm’s still holding up after the storm. Everything’s going smoothly for the new season. How about you?”

“My day went quite well, I had a phone call with my publisher about the timeline of my novel and edited a few of the passages,” he replies, “I also spent quite a lot of this time thinking.”

“Thinking?” she hums.

“Yes, thinking,” he says, “about you. About last night. About… us.”

Maria’s face warms up and she bites down on her lip, “yeah, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking about that too. Speaking of  _ which _ ...”

She trails off the end of her sentence and faces Elliott, looking up into his eyes as she brings the bouquet around and holds it out to him. He gasps, a blush dusting his cheeks as he gingerly grasps the flowers in his hands.

“Thought it’d be nice to make things official, y’know? If you want to, that is,” she mumbles, well aware that her freckled cheeks are likely a deep shade of red, “cause… I wanna take things further. With you. I mean.”

“Maria, I…” Elliott murmurs, a grin spreading on his face. Quickly, he grabs her hand in one of his and nods his head towards his cabin, “follow me.”

The farmer giggles as they walk hand in hand to his home, even if she’s somewhat confused. Once he unlocks the door though, she understands why he brought her inside.

Atop the piano, delicately placed, is another bouquet which looks nearly identical to the one now in Elliott’s hand.

“I may have also paid a visit to Pierre’s shop today,” he begins letting go of her hand to walk towards the piano and grab the flowers that he’d bought himself, “I’m assuming we both received the same letter of advertisement in the mail.”

He turns on his heel and returns to Maria, who happily takes the other bouquet into her grasp. Lifting it up, she takes in the scent of the flowers and smiles, “I have a feeling his wife Caroline had a hand in those letters being sent out. I think she’s trying to play matchmaker.”

Elliott chuckles, “I have a feeling we would have arrived at this point even without her nudging.”

“You’re probably right,” she grins, “so… this means that I’m your girlfriend?”

“And I shall be your boyfriend,” the writer agrees, “and accepting this title brings me the utmost joy.”

“Well then, boyfriend of mine,” Maria giggles, setting down her bouquet and tugging on his coat, “why don’t we pick up where we left off last night?”

Elliott blushes, a mischievous look flickering over his eyes, “with pleasure, dearest.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maria and Elliott sittin in a tree, K - I - S - S - I - N - G
> 
> hehe,,, time for all the cute relationship stuff with these dorks >:3
> 
> Comments and kudos always appreciated !
> 
> (everyone who stuck by after me not updating in months, thanks so much for comin back :D)


	14. Birthday Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maria has a special date planned for Elliott's birthday

“... so it’s thirty-five hundred gold for each night? Plus amenities… yeah…mhmm… yes, we’ll be arriving tomorrow, that’s Friday, and leaving on Sunday… we’ll check-out in the evening… you can mark the reservation under Maria Ortiz… mhmm… yes, it’ll only be two of us… alright, thank you so much… buh-bye”

Maria grins as she hangs up that call before tapping rapidly on her screen to pull up another contact- Elliott, who now in her list of contacts had a heart emoji next to his name, certifying that they were, in fact, in a relationship. When in high school Maria had seen countless other girls do the same on their own phones, and at the time she thought it silly, but now she understood. In her past relationships she’d never done so either, but something about Elliot was special.

Tapping the call button, she presses the phone up to her ear and waits for the writer to pick up.

One ring. Two rings-

“Hello?”

“Hiya honey,” the farmer smiles, his new nickname rolling off of her tongue easily, “I know this is sudden but you think we could meet up later today? I’ve got some news to tell you about.”

“Of course, dearest. I don’t have any calls or plans for the day, we can meet at any time,” he replies quickly.

“Good. Ummmm, swing by my farm some time this evening? I’ve just been helping Robin with some final preparations on the new barn, it should be done this weekend,” she says with a grin.

Elliott chuckles, “that’s wonderful news. I’ll be sure to pay you a visit later today then. See you soon, dear.”

“See you soooon~” Maria replies with a giggle.

Tapping her screen once more, she hangs up the call and pockets her phone before walking out of the farmhouse to walk across her land. The crops were all growing nicely, with rows of sprouts and leaves taking form. The trees all around Pelican town were darkening into red, brown, and orange hues, and the berry bushes in the forest and mountain were showing signs of budding blackberries that’d be ripe within the new few weeks.

The newest project Maria is most excited for though is the barn. After being inspected by Robin, the carpenter had decided the building’s skeleton could be salvaged even after being abandoned for years. The farmer had helped her tear down the walls, rip up the floor board, and remove the roof so fresh wood and new frames could be put into place.

Walking into the building, Maria was greeted by the now familiar noise of a hammer against wood. 

“Oh, hey there farmer,” Robin grinned, peering over her shoulders as she put another nail in place, “floorboards are just about finished up. All I gotta do after this is install the glass for the windows and the food trough for your cows and you’ll be all set.”

“Perfect,” the farmer smiles, “thanks so much for this. I’ve had my mind set on owning cows since my first day in the valley.”

Robin chuckles, slamming the hammer down once on the final nail before setting it aside and standing up, brushing herself off. “Well, you’ve got your chickens, you’re about to have your cows. You have any other plans coming up?”

Maria blinks, slightly confused before laughing, “what do you mean?”

“Welllll,” the carpenter smirks, “a little birdie told me that you and Elliott are a bit of an item now, huh?”

The farmer blushes and rolls her eyes, “which one? Caroline? Jodi?”

“Both, this Tuesday when I went to the weekly workout,” she laughs, “but Demetrius and I had a feeling this would happen ever since the flower dance.”

“That’s what  _ everyone _ has been saying,” Maria giggles, “I just hope the gossip isn’t negative, y’know?”

Robin quickly shakes her head, “nono, of course not. I think the town’s excited to see a new young couple. And if they’re all paying attention to the two of you, they can stop guessing if Abigail’s going to pick between Sam or Sebastian- for a little while, anyways.”

The farmer smiles, “well that’s good to know. Speaking of Elliott, I’m meeting him later today. I actually, um, planned something special for his birthday this weekend.”

The carpenter chuckles, “spill the beans, where are you going?’

“I booked us a room at the Iridium Rose and we’re going to see a play. I also have a couple restaurants in mind for us to eat at,” Maria grins, bouncing on the heels of her feet out of excitement.

“The Iridium Rose?” Robin gasps, “that’s one of the fanciest hotels this side of the gem sea, how’d you manage that?”

“I have a friend back in Zuzu City who works in the hotel, she pulled some strings for me and bumped my name up the list for availability. The place is nearly always booked but there was a last minute cancellation and bam, I snagged a room!” the farmer explained.

“Oh, Maria that’s great! I’m thrilled, I’m sure the two of you are gonna have a lot of fun,” Robin congratulates her.

“I hope so, it’s kinda gonna be like our first official date, y’know? I just want everything to go well,” Maria sighs.

“I’m sure it’ll all go great,” the carpenter reassures her, “now, come help me carry these glass panels.”

* * *

“So, you wrote everything down yeah?”

“Yup, I got everything. Show up in the morning, water the crops, feed the chickens, collect the eggs, feed Orion, anything that’s ripe I can put in the shipping box for Mayor Lewis to collect, check if any fences have to be mended, and tap the maple tree for syrup,” Leah repeats back, a small note pad in her hand where she’d written all the chores the farmer had tasked her with.

“Mhmm! And, if you ever ever get hungry or anything the fridge in the kitchen is stocked so feel free to feed yourself while you’re hanging out on the farm,” Maria replies.

“Anything in the barn?”

“Nah, Robin’s gonna swing by again tomorrow to put the finishing touches in, I don’t have any cows or anything in there yet.”

“So when are you guys leaving?”

“There’s a bus to Zuzu City scheduled around ten in the morning tomorrow, so I’ll be gone before that. I’ll leave the spare key to the farmhouse beneath the mat on the patio for you to grab once you show up. I’ll make sure all the animals are fed before I leave, you’ll just have to check on the crops and fences.”

“How much is Elliott going to know about?”

“I’m only telling him to pack a bag for the weekend and bring some nice clothes, he’s not going to know any other details than that.”

Leah chuckles at this, setting her notepad down and shaking her head at the farmer, “he’s going to faint when the two of you show up at that hotel tomorrow.”

“And if he does faint, he’ll wake up in one of the comfiest hotel beds in the entire country,” Maria smirks, sticking her tongue out at Leah.

The two women laugh together before discussing more plans for the weekend, and all the ways to improve this special trip.

* * *

The sun was beginning to set as Maria walked down her row of grape trellises, making sure all the wood beams for the vines to grow on were firmly set in the ground. Just as she begins to walk away from the final plant, a sudden voice makes her perk up.

“Hello, my dear! The farm looks stunning as always.”

The farmer can’t help the grin that spreads on her face once she hears him. She spins on her heels to look towards the farm’s entrance, being greeted by the sigh of Elliott walking up towards her farmhouse with a bag in his hands. The green tie he normally wore was loosened, and his hair was loosely tied back.

“Well, aren’t you casual,” Maria smiles, tugging off her work gloves and shoving them into her back pocket, “it’s a good look on you.”

The writer blushes slightly, “you think so? I simply see it as a symptom of a lazy day.”

Maria rolls her eyes as she walks up to him, “shush, you look handsome.” Leaning up on her tiptoes, she gives him a quick kiss before looking down at the bag, “and what’s in here?”

“I decided that since you and I were meeting for the evening I might as well bring dinner along, as a courtesy,” he smiles, reaching into the bag and pulling out a sealed container, “spaghetti for two from the saloon.”

“Oh, Elliott you didn’t have to pay for this, I could’ve made something here-” she attempts to say, but is quickly stopped in her tracks.

“I’ve already paid for it, and it’s here right in front of us, so hush and allow me to spoil you a little,” he chuckles, “shall I bring this into the farmhouse?”

Maria quickly nods her head, and bounds up the porch steps to swing the front door open for him. He walks inside and sets the container down on the kitchen table as the farmer pops open the fridge, “what’re we feeling tonight? Juice, water, wine?”

“I believe Lewis mentioned to me the other day that you’d made some kind of berry juice?” he replies.

“Oh yeah!” Maria grins, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a chilled glass bottle, “it’s got squeezed spice berries and blueberries, plus sugar since I’m not a fan of the tart taste. Not too much sugar though, the mayor was a fan when I gave him a sample, I’m thinking of making more to hand out during the Stardew Valley Fair in a few weeks since I have a surplus of berries left over from the summer.”

She grabs two glasses from the cupboard and pours the juice into them, the mix of berries resulting in an opaque violet color. At the same time, Elliott pulls two plates from the cupboard and splits the large serving of spaghetti between them. The farmer also grabs two forks, handing one to the writer as well as his glass of juice.

The pair get seated at the kitchen table to dig into their food, Maria is more than satisfied by the pasta and Elliott is pleasantly surprised by the berry juice. 

“Not meaning to rush you in any way, but what exactly is this news you were so excited to tell me about,” Elliott asks curiously.

Maria grins as she twists more spaghetti around her fork, “well, I can’t give you all the details just yet,  _ but _ since tomorrow’s your birthday I’ve planned a little surprise.”

“A little surprise?” he repeats with a quirked eyebrow.

“Yes, a surprise,” Maria giggles, “I can’t tell you much about it. All you get to know is that you and I are going out of town this weekend. You should pack a bag tonight.”

Elliott nearly chokes on the juice he was sipping as she said that. “A-A trip? Where, and why, and how-”

“Ah ah ah,” the farmer tuts, holding her hand up to hush him, “all you get to know is it’s a trip. If you agree, of course, we leave tomorrow in the morning and we’ll return Sunday night. All I’ll tell you for now is to pack a bag and bring one formal outfit- though I suppose what you normally wear is probably more than fine.”

“Formal outfit? Whatever for?” he tries to ask, but she shakes her head.

“I can’t tell you that, it’s a surprise! So, you wanna do it? I’ll be covering all the costs for the weekend, all you need to do is decide to tag along or not” she grins, leaning over the table and giving him an expectant look.

The writer stammers, “b-but how much does this cost? I understand you want to spoil me, but there’s no need to do so much-”

“You gave me an expensive gift for my birthday, I’m giving you one back,” Maria interrupts, sticking her tongue out at him.

“There’s a massive cost difference between a necklace and an all-expenses-paid trip to Yoba knows where,” Elliott deadpans.

The farmer giggles, “same difference. Soooo, you wanna come with me?”

“Are you going to tell me where we’ll be going if I say yes?” he asks.   
  
“Nope,” she replies, popping the ‘p’.

He sighs, drumming his fingers against his glass, before giving in and nodding his head, “oh alright. I cannot say no to you, my dear. By when do you expect me to be prepared?”

Maria grins widely, beaming at him once he agrees. “Meet me at the bus stop tomorrow morning by ten. Just pack a bag with enough clothes for the weekend, toiletries and all that, as well as one of your best formal attires.”

“Formalwear for what, pray tell?” he retorts.

“That’ll ruin the surpriseeee,” she drawls, “just trust me on this. You’re gonna love it.”

Elliott gives the farmer one last skeptical glance before smiling, “alright, alright. I trust you.”

The pair continue with their dinner and idly chat about their days and plans for the future, Maria discussing ideas on how to keep busy during the winter and Elliott discussing his revisions for his novel. By the end of the night, they’re bidding each other goodbye and exchanging a goodnight’s kiss, and as the farmer watches him retreat down the beaten path back into town she can’t help but brim with excitement over what the next day will hold.

* * *

At six the next morning Maria’s head popped right off the pillow at the sound of her alarm, already wide awake and full of energy. Throwing off her covers and shutting up her phone, she dashed into the bathroom for a brisk shower, washing her hair and scrubbing herself clean.

Once outside, she wraps a towel around her hair to dry it off as before lugging one of her suitcases out of the back closet. Flipping it open, she folds and tosses an array of clothing inside: sleepwear, undergarments, shirts, and some jeans. She also delicately pulls out a long, deep blue gown that she’d saved for a special occasion long ago and gently places it alongside the rest of her packed clothing.

After sorting out the shoes and toiletries she’d bring along as well, the final item she stows with the rest is the necklace Elliott had given her for her birthday. Gently, she tucks the jewelry box away and zips up her luggage, pushing it aside to finish her morning preparations. 

Toweling off the rest of her hair, she lets her curls hang loose and tugs on some denim shorts and a baggy shirt. Walking out of her bedroom, she casually flicks the television on to the local news station and is greeted by a morning report of the weather and some fluff stories.

In the kitchen, she set her coffee maker to brew and grabbed a field snack bar from the pantry, eating it happily as she walked out the front door of her farmhouse and towards the coop. Once inside, she collected the eggs that girls had left behind and made sure their feeding trough and waterer were all full.

“Alright ladies,” she announced, bending down and looking over all her birds, “I’m gonna be gone for a couple days. My friend Leah is gonna come around to take care of you guys, I expect you all to behave, yeah?”

All she receives in reply is a few chirps and peeps. Chuckling, she pets Corvus and Cygnus before picking up the basket of eggs and walking out of the coop. 

Maria performs one last check on all her crops, all of which look to be in perfect shape and growing on schedule. When a sudden chill washes over her though, her teeth chatter as she shivers. “Colder than I thought it’d be today, but the weatherman did mention a cold front. And it is Autumn now, I suppose. I’m gonna need some longer pants.”

Dashing back into the farmhouse, she stows the chicken eggs in her fridge before walking into her bedroom and exchanging her farming clothes for some more weather-appropriate attire. She switches her shorts for some thick black leggings, and her baggy shirt for a form-fitting long sleeve shirt. She also decides to grab one of her scarves from the closet and tuck it inside of her luggage bag, just in case the cold stays in Zuzu City over the weekend as well.

Back in the kitchen, she pours her coffee into a mug and idly sips on it as she checks her phone. It’s now 9:10, after all her packing and tending to the chickens, all she needs to do is finish her drink and head over to the bus stop.

As she sips from her mug, she can’t help the smile that dances over her lips. She’s ecstatic. Spending the weekend with someone she’s so fond of, and not only that, she was giving him a gift- and hopefully one he’d really enjoy.

It’s been quite some time since she’d been on a date like this, being alone with someone she liked for so long. She simply hoped she didn’t make a fool of herself.

Once the clock ticked closer to ten, she downed the rest of her coffee, shut off the television, and bid Orion a goodbye by giving him plenty of scratches behind the ears. “I’ll see you in a few days, buddy.”

Grabbing her suitcase from her room, she stepped outside of the farmhouse and locked it, leaving the key behind for Leah before marching her way down the dirt path to the bus stop.

Fallen leaves crunch beneath the heels of her boots as she walked, and she absentmindedly hummed to herself. As she arrived to the bus sign itself, she set her luggage down and sat on top of it, using it as a makeshift seat as she pulled out her phone to scroll.

It was about two minutes to 10 when the Zuzu City bus pulled up to the stop- and there was no sign of Elliott. Growing somewhat nervous, Maria stood up and waved at the driver, before turning to look back to the road.

“Young lady, are you going to be getting on the bus?” the driver, a somewhat older woman, rolled down the window to ask her.

“Y-yeah, in just a moment, I’m waiting for someone,” the farmer replied.

The driver sighed, “alright, I’ll give you a couple more minutes, but I’m on a schedule.”

“Thank you, I understand,” Maria replied, biting down on her lip as she flipped through her phone contacts to call Elliott.

The phone rings. “C’mon, please pick up,” she whispers. It rings again.

No answer.

Her anxious thoughts start racing.  _ ‘Did he cancel without letting me know? Did something come up… was I too forward? Did I scare him off? He wouldn’t just ditch me, he’s never… he would’ve let me know-’ _

“Maria!”

Her head shoots up and she looks towards the path once more, and she can’t help the grin that spreads on her face when she sees a familiar redhead sprinting towards her.

“Dearest, my apologies,” he begins once he stands before her, “I slept in past the time I’d planned on awaking, Willy had stopped me at the beach to inquire about my cabin with the oncoming cold weather, I needed to pay Emily a visit so she could sew one of my coats that had a ripped seam-”

The farmer giggles as she presses her finger to his lips to pause his rambling, “no need to say sorry, you’re here now, c’mon let’s get on the bus.”

The pair grab their luggage and board the vehicle. Being the only passengers, Maria is quick to scurry over to one of the window seats so she can look out at the valley during the drive, and she smiles at Elliott when he sits besides her.

“Well, if I’m reading that sign correctly, and I know I am, this is the bus line to Zuzu City,” Elliott murmurs to her as the bus shudders back to life and begins to cruise down the road, “what surprises could you possibly have for me there?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see,” she grins, crossing her legs, “the big  **big** surprise is tonight, but we’ll have a couple hours to get ready for it once we arrive.”

He glances over at her curiously, “we’ll have to prepare for it? I assume it’s some kind of event?”

“Something like that,” she giggled, turning to look out the window.

The bus passed through the tunnel and the next thing she knew they were leaving the boundary of Pelican Town. Nervous thoughts came flooding back to the forefront of the farmer’s mind though; a fear that she’d screw up the trip somehow, he’d want to leave, she’d do something,  _ anything _ , and it’d make Elliott realize that his affection for her was a fleeting phase.

When she feels a faint touch on her hand though, she blinks and turns her gaze, blushing when she realizes Elliott’s palm was atop her own. With a grin, she laces her fingers with his, and decides, just for a little while, to push her anxiousness aside and enjoy the present.

* * *

“Maria…”

“Yes Elliott?”

After a two hour ride on the bus, the two had been deposited in the heart of downtown Zuzu City at the steps of-

“The Iridium Rose?” Elliott gasps, staring up at the monolith of a hotel in awe, “I- how- we’re staying  _ here? _ ”

“We sure are,” Maria giggled, grasping his hand in her own, “c’mon, let’s go get checked in.”

The pair walk through a revolving door and enter into the most immaculate lobby the farmer had ever seen in her life. The heels of her boots clicked against a polished marble floor and the light of a crystal chandelier that hung above them lit the room. Marble columns on either side of the room are decorated with vines of sweet-smelling flora, and a deep-red rug leads them to the concierge desk where a neatly-dressed woman waits for them at a computer.

“Hello and welcome to the Iridium Rose, my name is Meredith and I’m most happy to help you during your stay in Zuzu City,” she greets them with a smile, “do you have a reservation I can look up?”

“Oh! Yes,” Maria quickly replies, “it’s filed under the last name Ortiz?”

The receptionist nods and clicks through some tabs on the computer before turning back to the farmer, “yes I see it here, Maria Ortiz, two night stay in one of our Prismatic suites, full amenities, and you’ll be checking out on Sunday?”

“Correct.”

“Wonderful, now then,” Meredith snaps her fingers and a young man walks up to the desk, “this is Thomas, he’ll be taking your luggage up to your room. Please feel free to help yourself to the drinks and snacks in the cafe in the west wing down that hallway as I finalize the information and print out the key card for your room, all I ask is that you return in about fifteen minutes with the payment of gold for your stay.”

Maria smiles at Thomas as he picks up the luggage, and the receptionist tells him what the farmer assumes is the room number before he walks away towards the elevator. When she looks back to Elliott, she giggles, noticing he’s gazing around the entry hall with wonder in his eyes.

Grasping his hand in her own, she tugs him out of his spaced out state by nodding towards the cafe, “c’mon, I barely had breakfast, let’s go eat something.”

The cafe is cozy, yet still as fancy as the rest of the building. Cushioned seats in curved nooks lined the walls, with pristinely polished coffee tables sat around for use. A snack bar filled to the brim with various pastries, sweets, and savory bite-sized eats was in the center of the room, as well as a bar manned by two employees who were currently chatting with another patron. 

“Are we allowed to simply grab anything we see,” Elliott murmured curiously.

“Yes,” the farmer grinned, “it’s all included.”

After grabbing a blueberry muffin and a glass of juice from the bar, Maria got settled into one of the seats, soon being joined by Elliott who had his own poppyseed muffin and glass of water.

The farmer had just barely lifted the pastry to her mouth to take a bite, before gasping loudly, nearly dropping her treat.

“Oh my Yoba, I haven’t even told you happy birthday yet,” she nearly exclaimed.

The writer, however, chuckled at this.

“Dearest, just because you have yet to verbally tell me happy birthday, does not mean that you haven’t told me through your actions,” he smiled, “have you seen where we are? Where you’ve brought me, via your generosity alone? This, already, is a birthday wish I’ll be remembering for many years to come.”

Maria blushed listening to him. “W-well… still. Happy birthday. Gosh, how are you  _ so _ nice all the time?”

“In all my years I’ve found that anger doesn’t tend to get anyone anywhere, and simply hurts yourself and those around you. I do my best to stay kind and understanding, even when some people aren’t acting in a way that’s deserving of my kindness. With you, I never struggle at all to be kind, as you’re quite kind to me yourself,” he explains, giving the farmer a warm look.

Flushed, and incredibly flustered, the farmer stammers out a ‘thank you’ before shoving a piece of muffin in her mouth to avoid saying anything stupid.

After the pair enjoy their makeshift lunch, they head back to the concierge desk where Maria forks over seven thousand gold to pay for the two night stay (much to Elliott’s shock), and two key cards for room 1202.

“Take the lift up to the twelfth floor and your suite will be two rooms to the left,” the receptionist smiles, “welcome and enjoy your stay at the Iridium Rose.”

Once inside the elevator, Maria excitedly presses the button for their floor and very quickly the lift begins to rise. Bouncing back and forth on her feet, she looks at Elliott with a grin, “this is actually my first time staying anywhere this nice. So, I’m indulging both of us if I’m being honest.”

“I’m sure our relationship is going to have plenty of us indulging one another,” he chuckles, leaning against the wall opposite of her.

The farmer blushes, “is that supposed to be an innuendo?”

“I- n-no, that was  _ not  _ my intent,” the writer sputters, causing her to giggle.

“I’m just messing with you, don’t worry~” Maria smirks.

There’s a small dinging noise, and the next thing she knows the elevator doors are sliding open. Stepping outside, she’s greeted by a long hallway lined with a deep-blue, plush rug and golden sconces lighting up either side of the wall.

Gripping her key card, she walks towards the left as the receptionist had instructed, passing by room 1201, and then stopping in front of their door.

“To be totally honest I have no idea how the inside is supposed to look,” she admits, sliding her key card into the lock and hearing a small  _ click _ , “I just know it’s supposed to be fancy.”

Turning the handle, she pushes open the door and stares with wide eyes at the view before her.

The prismatic suite is  _ large _ , likely bigger than any apartment on could rent in Zuzu City itself. The door opens to a hallway that splits off in varying directions, one is a fully stocked kitchen with a snack bar full of sweets and treats, the other is a powder room, a walk in closet, one is the bathroom with the biggest shower Maria had ever seen in her life, as well as a jacuzzi tub, a small seating area with a large flat-screen tv and a fireplace, and then the bedroom.

The bedroom itself is exquisite. One of the walls of pure glass windows, looking over the cityscape with the horizon in the valley, with velvety curtains on either side to draw at night for privacy. There’s a wardrobe that the pair’s suitcases had been laid beside, a smaller closet with an ironing board within it, a nightstand that when opened reveals various lotions, creams, oils, and even a small sewing kit. The bed is massive, with many pillows lining the headrest, and a dark red cover and paler red blankets beneath.

It’s perfect. Nearly perfect. Not as perfect when Maria realizes:

“There’s only one bed,” she gasps, “when I’d phoned I requested a suite with two beds…”

“Why’s that?” Elliott asked curiously, lifting his suitcase onto the end of the bed.

“W-well,” Maria stammered, “I just didn’t know if you’d be uncomfortable sharing a bed with me? I mean I know we’re dating but I don’t want you to feel compelled to do anything like  _ that _ .”

“Dearest, we’ve slept together before,” the writer replied, and upon seeing the blush on her face he continues, “not in  _ that _ way, in the literal sense. Though if it would make you more comfortable, I can sleep on the couch in the other-”

“No!” the farmer exclaims, “this is  _ your _ birthday trip, I’m not making you sleep on the couch. I mean… we can sort it out later tonight, but, I don’t mind sharing with you, we have done it before.”

The pair takes some time to get settled into the suite, Maria taking her suitcase to the closet to hang up the clothing she’d brought, and Elliott curiously exploring the various amenities and parts of the room.

As it neared three o’clock, Maria bursts into the seating area with a grin, startling Elliott who’d been cozily reading a novel.

“So, the reason I asked you to bring formalwear is because you and I are going to a venue tonight.”

“A venue?”

“Yes!”

“For some kind of show?”

“Something like that. We’ve gotta be ready by five, so we can head down to the lobby to and get a taxi and head to the place.”

“I can certainly manage that.”

The next two hours are a blur of preparation. Maria takes everything she needs to the powder room, leaving Elliott to use the bathroom to shower and do whatever he may need to get dressed.

After stripping, the farmer focuses on her makeup, putting in a little more effort than she usually would- covering up her blemishes and faint scars from her months of work on the farm. She even puts on lipstick, something she never wears, though the color isn’t too bold. Her hair, which had been air-drying since the morning, is a bit of a hassle but eventually he gets it tied up and pinned back in a more formal way. 

Then comes her clothing. She exchanges her typical undergarments for strapless, form fitting ones that’ll fit seamlessly beneath her form fitting gown, as well as tugging on nylon stockings. The dress itself is slipped on next, the long, deep blue fabric faintly shimmers in the light as it hugs her curves- though there is a slit on the right side for her leg to slip through. The gown is held up by thin straps that hang on Maria’s shoulders, and the back of the gown dips low, exposing more skin than the farmer typically shows.

The final steps of her preparation are a pair of black heels, a silver bangle for her right wrist, and blue earrings to match her gown.

With a grin, she spins around in front of the full length mirror, admiring herself. “I clean up well,” she giggles, placing her hands on her hips and giving herself one last once over before walking out of the room.

Back inside the bedroom of the prismatic suite, she digs through her suitcase before pulling out the small jewelry box that had the final accent to her evening wear- however, the sound of a door opening stops her from opening the box.

Elliott steps into the room, and Maria doesn’t bother to stop herself from staring. He is dapper, even more so than he usually appears. His long, red hair has been slicked back into a low pony-tail, exposing more of the strong jawline the farmer’s come to know and love. His overcoat is similar to the one he normally wears, though this one has coattails. It’s fitted nicely to him, giving him a strong air of elegance. 

And as she stares, the writer does the same to her, though he’s not very subtle about the way he checks her out.

“Dearest, you look… absolutely gorgeous,” he smiles, walking up to her besides the bed.

“I could say the same to you,” she grins, “somehow even fancier than what you wear around the town.”

Elliott chuckles warm-heartedly, lifting one of his hands to cradle Maria’s face, “I appreciate the compliment, sweetness. But you… you put me to shame, as well as anyone else we may encounter. You are absolutely stunning. This dress suits you quite well… every movement makes it appear as though a sea of stars is dancing across your form.”

The farmer blushes intensely, biting down on her lip, “you… you and your way with words, you better be careful speaking like that or it will make me fall for you more than I already have.”

The two of them share a laugh, before she leans up to press a quick kiss to his lips.

“Would you mind helping me with the necklace?” she asks curiously as she pulls back, lifting the jewelry box up again.

He nods, and she opens the box to reveal the crescent moon necklace that he’d bought for her for her own birthday. Gently, he lifts the accessory out of the box and steps around so he’s stood behind Maria.

She moves her hair out of the way, and a faint shiver goes down her spine as he reaches a hand around her neck to place the moon pendant on her neck before connecting the ends of the chain behind her.

“Does that fit alright?” he asks, his warm breath bouncing off of her bare skin.

“Y-yeah, fits perfect,” she stammers without meaning to, flustered by his closeness, “c’mon, let’s head down to the lobby.”

Hand in hand, the pair leave their suite, excited for what the night ahead may hold for them.

* * *

Ooooo lil extra doodle of the pair in their fancy clothes:

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooo wholesome birthday content yayyy
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are super duper appreciate :3


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